What a crazy past couple of weeks it’s been. The turmoil on Wall Street is certainly keeping me up at night, though I’m fortunate in the sense that I wasn’t one of the thousands of brokerage employees who lost their job in the ensuing collapse. In yesterday’s Wall Street Journal, an article discussing the current market and its impact on recent B-school grads spelled it out plainly: a well-defined career path isn’t something you can bank on anymore. And like the current crisis, the need to reevaluate career paths extends well beyond downtown Manhattan.

Now more than ever, money matters and career choices go hand in hand. Take everything that goes with a down economy and add in the skyrocketing costs of higher education, it’s no surprise more and more college students and young alumni are grappling with school loans and their significant impact on BIG decisions… decisions like “what am I going to do for the rest of my life to pay off my debt?”

Earlier this month, Experience polled Gen Y on the subject of student loans and their role in forging career paths. In our Student Loans Survey, half of the respondents who indicated they were currently in school reported they are more likely to accept a job that offers higher pay, but less career satisfaction, in order to repay their student loans. Nearly a third of this group reported that their loan status weighed heavily in decisions to pursue a particular career. Of the college grads who took the survey, the vast majority – at 88 percent – said they have made sacrifices in their budget because of their student loan payments. They indicated these budget sacrifices have affected even common expenses like gas, rent and food – not to mention entertainment and retail shopping.

While it’s certainly a positive sign for our economy as a whole that college students and young grads are taking preemptive measures to deal with the financial ramifications of student loan debt, the reality that career satisfaction is sometimes put on the back burner as a result is unfortunate. But that’s just what it is: reality. As one survey respondent put it…

With all of this said, there’s a silver lining for recruiters who are competing to bring onboard budget-strapped Gen Y talent. Employers who have the ability to offer paid internships, scholarships, loan assistance initiatives and related benefits that ease student loan debt burden will only help them attract – and ultimately retain – the largest pool of qualified entry-level candidates.