But Ray’s position, other” work-study programs,”:http://careernetwork.msu.edu/gettingexperience/part-time-jobs/work-study students receiving financial aid and thousands of others could be in jeopardy if Congress can’t negotiate a way to avoid billions in spending cuts slated to take effect late this week. According to information from the White House, 1,300 work-study programs in Michigan alone are on the chopping block should Congress fail to reach a compromise.

“If this gets cut, I might just have to go to work at a Subway shop doing mindless work to pay the bills,” Ray said.

Workers nationwide are bracing themselves for the impact of the automatic across-the-board spending cuts, often referred to as the sequester, meant to reduce the nation’s $16 trillion debt.

The White House released numbers and facts Monday regarding how the sequester could affect each state. In Michigan, many college students could lose opportunities to use university resources to pay tuition. If the spending cuts take effect, about 2,490 fewer low-income students would receive financial aid, according to the data.

Ray said although he has had help from his family, he’s about $7,000 in debt and needs his work-study job to help pay bills.

MSU spokesperson Kent Cassella said the university is monitoring the situation and the various ways it could impact MSU.

“We strongly encourage lawmakers to come to a fair and equitable solution as soon as possible,” he said. “The quality of undergraduate and graduate education and the research endeavors at MSU and across academia cannot be compromised if America is to remain a global leader.”

Work-study programs are just one of the many areas of Michigan’s economy that could be affected by the sequester. The state’s K-12 schools would lose about $22 million in funding, about 10,000 civilian Department of Defense workers would be laid off, and Michigan health services would lose about $944,000 in funding toward health care to treat diseases and another $2.9 million in grants for substance abuse programs.

In January, Congress set the deadline for this Friday to force itself to agree on a solution to fix the nation’s growing deficit after House Republicans refused to raise the debt ceiling in 2011.

During the National Governors Association meeting in Washington, D.C., on Monday, Gov. Rick Snyder said purposely creating a sequester to force Congress to fix the budget was a failure.

“That just illustrates the mess is in Washington compared to the states,” he told C-SPAN.

Political science assistant professor Matt Grossmann said solving the sequester boils down to two things: reducing tax deductions and reducing Medicaid spending.

“We haven’t accomplished either one of those, and the hardest decisions have been left to the last minute,” he said.

It’s up to Congress to decide how to avoid the spending cuts before the Friday deadline, and Grossmann said he expects the situation to play out much like the fiscal cliff negotiations -— Congress will reach a decision at the eleventh hour, moments before its deadline.