But it is much harder to get other forms of unsecured debt.  An 18 year old with no job and no credit history is going to have a hard time getting a credit card with a $5k limit let alone a $100k loan.  The lack of being able to discharge the loan in bankruptcy needs to go hand in hand with the guaranteed availability of the loan.  Instead of changing one of those things, we are are better off coming up with a new system like no upfront tuition and income based repayment plans.