I've been researching this myself. What I've found is that student loans generally aren't dischargeable in bankruptcy, but there are certain conditions where they could be. Obviously consult a BL attorney, but it seems judges generally rely on these criteria:

1. If forced to pay back the loans it would result in undue hardship for yourself and/or your dependants
2. That hardship would last for the duration of the loan
3. You have tried to pay the loan off.

From what I've read it is pretty hard to prove that the loans provide an undue hardship. If you're out at the bar all the time and come home to watch your satellite tv, etc. They might decide you just need to cut back. One thing that would be a factor is if you or a dependant had a chronic illness (Lou Gherig's, Parkinson's, MS), it would help you prove hardship. Also, as of Jul 1, 09 - if you work in certain industries that have low pay (teacher, special ed, hospice care, etc.) you may be granted loan forgiveness - I think without filing BK - if you have been in the field 10 yrs and have been making payments. This may not apply to our situation but some might find it helpful. Also, I've read about some judges that will never discharge a student loan, and then others that do it every time. Luck of the draw, I guess.

I also would recommend Total Money Makover. The philosophies in that book are very good. He makes the point that "The borrower is slave to the lender," referencing Prov. 22:7. (Hopefully not a TOS violation right there). I don't think anybody - religious or not - can deny that that's the truth. The unfortunate truth is that student loans are acquired by people at an age when they don't really understand what it means to be in debt for that length of time. People talk about how revolving credit card debt is the worst kind of debt, but they're wrong. Student loan debt is. With no statute of limitations and such difficulty discharging student loans in BK, people who tried to better themselves are punished while the irresponsible (who bought houses they knew they couldn't pay for, or ran up cc bills buying luxury items they didn't need, all while making a Wal-Mart salary) get off scott free in BK court. Without a statute of limitations, those with student loans are lumped in with murderers and those guilty of treason. For crying out loud, even child molesters reap the benefit of some kind of statute of limitations! How messed up is that?!

Anyway, before I get off my soapbox, I would reccommend NEVER getting a student loan if you haven't already. If I had it to do over again, I would've joined the army and let them teach me to fly helicopters on Uncle Sam's dime. Nothing on earth could make me sign my life away to SLM or Key Bank again. Not in a million years. You'd be better off working at McD's the rest of your life.