Editor's note: The name of the student in this story has been withheld to protect her identity.

College students are known for being short on money. Selling possessions is one way they can make ends meet.

Some students sell compact discs, some sell their video games. One K-State student tried selling her body.

"I couldn't pay my rent," the student said.

Thursday afternoon, she was cited by the Riley County Police Department for prostitution, when she inadvertently solicited an officer, said Lt. Michael Quintanar of the RCPD.

"We got information that this young lady was offering sex for money, so we pursued it," Quintanar said.

The student said she was in a Kansas chat room and was complaining she couldn't pay her rent. A person she met online said he had someone who could help her, and she made contact through a third party to exchange sex for money.

"I wasn't thinking it could be bad for me - I was just thinking I couldn't pay my rent," she said.

The student said she convinced herself it was simply a transaction, and she didn't want to be evicted from her apartment.

When she arrived at the location, the man she was supposed to meet identified himself as a police officer, and she was cited for prostitution, Quintanar said.

Technically, Quintanar said, she was arrested, although she only received a ticket. Otherwise known as a notice to appear, the ticket carries an "own recognizance" bond, he said.

The student said she doesn't yet know the amount of the ticket. She has a court date, but she is trying to get a diversion.

"I just got it in my mind everything was gonna be OK," she said.

Prostitution is a class-B misdemeanor, said Sarah Barr, attorney for student legal services in the Office of Student Activities and Services.

Prostitution is punishable by a sum not to exceed $1,000 and/or a jail term up to six months, Barr said.

In comparison, patronizing a prostitute is a class-C misdemeanor, which is punishable with a fine of $500 and is not to exceed one month in jail.

Prostitution is a midrange misdemeanor, Barr said.

"But which would you rather stand in court and have read aloud?" she said.

Prostitution is a crime of desperation, Barr said, and students with financial problems sometimes cannot see light at the end of the tunnel.

Services are available to students with financial problems, Barr said. If students are unable to pay rent, the landlord cannot kick them out of the apartment immediately, she said.

"If you can't pay your bills, you know, talk to someone about short-term, mid-term and long-term consequences," she said.

Options are available to students who need financial assistance, including part-time jobs, both on-campus and off.

Students can access job listings at www.k-state.edu/employment, as well as ask for help for food from the Flint Hills Breadbasket.

Barr said she often encounters students with financial problems. She has not dealt with any prostitution cases, however, and she said it apparently is a sign of the economic times.

"Are students becoming so desperate?" she said. "It breaks my heart. It just breaks my heart."