This fall, freshmen might have more to worry about than just learning their way around Penn State's sprawling campus.

As state appropriations continue to dwindle and tuition is on the rise, this year's freshmen class might find paying for college increasingly difficult.

Some students need to work to continue to pay tuition, but time spent at their job can affect studying time, said Mary Anne Knapp, a clinical social worker and therapist for the Center for Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS). More than ever, families struggle to pay for students' education as tuition continues to rise.

Melissa Fariss (freshman-human development and family studies) is waiting until she adjusts to college life before she gets a job. She agrees paying for tuition is an issue for students but adjusting to college is just as stressful.

Fariss said she has to learn to manage her time before she begins a job because she knows balancing the two can be a challenge.

Dan Cleary (senior-environmental systems engineering) said the tuition increase -- 9.8 percent for Pennsylvania residents and 6.9 percent for out-of-state students -- has caused many of his friends to hold two or three jobs at the same time while taking classes.

"A lot of my friends get really stressed out," Cleary said.

Cleary works at home to pay for some of his tuition, but many students are less fortunate due to their family's inability to help with the costs.

The extra jobs cut into a lot of the time students have to study for classes and to enjoy their time at college, he said.

"Some students are dealing with the stress of overload," Knapp said.

There are many problems linked to students' stress, Knapp said. Besides finances, some of these problems include academics, work, relationships and a tougher adjustment to college.

The larger workload associated with college is also a change for many freshmen.

"Now I have to do hours of reading every night," Fariss said.

CAPS has a moderate increase in demands for service every few years. Adjustment disorders, which include problems like homesickness and fear of not fitting in, accounted for 17 percent of cases at CAPS last year, Knapp said. Also, 17 percent of the students who used CAPS had diagnosable anxiety disorders, which can develop in upperclassmen after going through stress for multiple semesters.

Student athletes have a particularly difficult time balancing academics with their athletic obligations, Knapp said. It is just as difficult for student athletes to balance their sport and school work as it is for students who maintain jobs.

Many students are also experiencing stress from relationships.

Carin Segal (freshman-meteorology) said that as a freshman, it is difficult to deal with relationships that were left at home.

"I always thought that my relationship would be a big issue when I came to college," she said.

Hollis Mason (graduate-higher education), an assistant at Lion Support, which offers advice to students from students, said there are many calls from freshmen and transfer students having adjustment issues.

Since Penn State has such a large campus, many students feel lost, Mason said.

Lion Support gets more calls toward the end of semesters when classes are becoming more difficult and responsibilities build up, she added.

The likelihood of stress can be increased by having fewer resources to turn to for help, Knapp said.

It is important for students to realize that many problems that cause stress should not be dealt with alone, she said.

"There are things that are out of our control," she said.