Mixing education with religion can result in sizable savings. Many private, religiously affiliated colleges and universities are slashing tuition and offering incentives to attract new students — and to stay afloat, reports CNN Money.

The public is not alone in its struggle to balance the current economic environment with the financial realities of secondary education. Many institutions are also experiencing hard times and some may not survive if they do not get more students onto their campuses.

To entice new students, CNN Money says there is a trend among religiously-affiliated colleges, both big and small, where they are extending incentives such as are cutting tuition by double-digit percentages and capping the price of admission for all four years or offering huge discounts based on academic performance.

Religiously affiliated schools have multiple challenges to manage. More individuals are already second guessing college or struggling to afford it.

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Fewer young people subscribe to a religion, reducing the pools of potential recruits. And, some worry that graduating from a faith-based college will make it harder to get a job or obtain certain salaries.

But finances often trump other concerns and some people may be attracted by these incentives. However, the Associated Press reveals that the savings may not be the blessing that students expect.

To avoid debt, the AP says students are taking measures such as working longer hours, taking fewer credits and "trading down" to less selective institutions with lower prices.

Those may sound like money-savers, but in fact each is a well-documented risk factor that makes students less likely to graduate, the AP reports.