By Nicolette Helling & photojournalist Carrie Kohlmeier, FOX 21 News

DULUTH - As students across the Northland head back to school, Minnesota universities are spending some extra time talking about money.

And Sunday at UMD, freshman heard the ugly truth about living beyond your means.

"I graduated with seven thousand dollars in credit card debt," said Patrick Mcgarity.

As a part of Bulldog Welcome Week, first–year students are required to attend Mcgarity's "Big Money" presentation.

"I get a lot of questions about credit cards," said Mcgarity.

He keeps their attention by handing out cash to students with correct answers to financial questions, but Mcgarity says his goal isn't necessarily to entertain.

"I figure if every student can take one thing away from my presentation, whether its on identity theft, whether its on credit card or saving, that one thing is more than they would have had, had I not been here," said Mcgarity.

And with more students paying the brunt of school costs this year, UMD officials say a presentation like "Big Money" is essential.

"We have about five things that we make sure every freshman student touches on. One of them is financial literacy," said Jeni Eltink, UMD director of the first-year experience and students in transition.

While some students may have looked disinterested, others were paying very close attention.

"I think the biggest thing I took away was probably to start saving and to start saving early," said Blair Moses, a freshman from Andover.

"I learned that it's actually good to get a credit card," said Jonna Odden, a freshman from Coon Rapids.

Patrick told students, having a credit card is fine as long as you use it responsibly.

That means paying off the entire balance or at least, more than the minimum payment, every month, on time.

Amber Gurskey is a first time college student.

"I'll be paying for it myself," said Gurskey.

And a first time credit card user.

"So this was very helpful to me because I just got it in the beginning of the month and used it to pay for books so far," said Gurskey.

Another thing college students have to worry about is the economy.

One freshman said, she can already see how the financial crisis might impact her four year here at UMD.

"I've looked for a job in Duluth and I haven't found one yet," said Kathleen Severson, a UMD freshman. "It's really hard to get a job and I don't know how I'm gonna find my money for the rest of the year."

Solving that problem without going into credit card debt might be a challenge, but Mcgarity says it's the only smart thing to do.

"The message I'm trying to get across is, just be smart about using it," said Mcgarity.

Jeni Eltink of UMD also mentioned, the university is hearing from more families whose financial situations have changed since filing taxes just six months ago.

Eltink says, those changes are a source of added economic stress for students.