The nation's financial meltdown has played out from Wall Street to the halls of Congress.

But financial aid experts say college campuses -- or at least the federal student loans that help pay tuition there -- should remain safe through the 2009-10 school year.

Private student loans, on the other hand, have been getting harder to find for months.

"So far, students are still able to get (federal) loans," said Jason Kot, director of student financial aid at Lone Star College. "Pell grants are still available. Federal aid is still available. I haven't seen changes in funding levels."

Money can buy happiness, at least when you are a college student looking for your first job, according to a recent survey.

Some 50 percent of college students say they would be more likely to accept a job that offers higher pay but less career satisfaction in order to pay off their student loans, according to a report by Boston student career networking service firm Experience Inc. But only 40 percent of recent grads said they actually took a higher pay, lower satisfaction job.

As financial aid officials, students, families and lenders continue to experience the peak period for higher education enrollment, the combined efforts of policymakers, schools, and lenders appear to have averted what could have become a devastating college access crisis for California students.

During the past year, over 100 lenders exited the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) program, and many others restricted lending to students at certain schools. These developments, resulting from credit market turmoil and $40 billion in cuts to the FFEL by Congress, led to widespread concern that students would have limited ability to finance their educations this fall.

Congress has approved through the 2010 academic year a program that will allow college students who rely on loans to continue their educations regardless of current difficulties in the private credit market.

The Senate passed the legislation on a voice vote Sept. 17. The bill authorizes the U.S. secretary of education to buy loans from lenders in the federal guaranteed-loan program when those lenders are unable to meet demand. It ensures that lenders will have reliable access to capital to make new loans.

The House passed the bill Sept. 16, and it now goes to President Bush for his signature. The secretary's current lending authority expires in July 2009.

The outlook is bleak for those fresh-faced college kids trying to get ahead because many of them will not be able to get student loans this year.

Students and parents have had to search harder, wait longer, pay more, and--in at least a few cases--post pleas for funding on the Web.

The national credit crisis has caused confusion and some last-minute scrambling for college students and their parents, but most of them have been able to borrow the money they need to pay for school.