the government started giving student loans in 2007.
when did the government start giving student loans?
2007
united states government-backed student loans were first offered in 1958 under the national defense education act (ndea), and were only available to select categories of students, such as those studying toward engineering, science, or education degrees. the student loan program, along with other parts of the act, which subsidized college professor training, was established in response to the soviet union's launch of the sputnik satellite, and a widespread perception that the united states was falling behind in science and technology, in the middle of the cold war. student loans were extended more broadly in the 1960s under the higher education act of 1965, with the goal of encouraging greater social mobility and equality of opportunity.
student loans in the united states
united states federal student loans and some private student loans can be discharged in bankruptcy only with a showing of "undue hardship." in contrast to credit card debt, which often can be discharged through bankruptcy proceedings, this option is not generally available for educational loan debt. additionally, those seeking to discharge their student loan debt must initiate an adversary proceeding, a separate lawsuit within the bankruptcy case where they illustrate the required undue hardship. many borrowers cannot afford to retain an attorney or the additional litigation costs associated with an adversary proceeding, let alone a bankruptcy case. further complicating matters, the undue hardship standard varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, but is generally difficult to meet, making student loans practically non-dischargeable through bankruptcy. in most circuits discharge depends on meeting three prongs in the "brunner" test: as noted by the district court, there is very little appellate authority on the definition of "undue hardship" in the context of 11 u.s.c. § 523(a)(8)(b). based on legislative history and the decisions of other district and bankruptcy courts, the district court adopted a standard for "undue hardship" requiring a three-part showing: (1) that the debtor cannot maintain, based on current income and expenses, a "minimal" standard of living for herself and her dependents if forced to repay the loans; (2) that additional circumstances exist indicating that this state of affairs is likely to persist for a significant portion of the repayment period of the student loans; and (3) that the debtor has made good faith efforts to repay the loans. for the reasons set forth in the district court's order, we adopt this analysis. the first part of this test has been applied frequently as the minimum necessary to establish "undue hardship." see, e.g., bryant v. pennsylvania higher educ. assistance agency (in re bryant), 72 b.r. 913, 915 (bankr.e.d.pa.1987); north dakota state bd. of higher educ. v. frech (in re frech), 62 b.r. 235 (bankr.d.minn.1986); marion v. pennsylvania higher educ. assistance agency (in re marion), 61 b.r. 815 (bankr.w.d.pa.1986). requiring such a showing comports with common sense as well.while federal student loans can be discharged administratively for total and permanent disability, private student loans cannot be discharged outside of bankruptcy.
student loans in the united states