Java Swing Error using Guide

When I enter 'guide' in to the matlab command window, the GUI editor fails to open and returns this error message:

     Error using guide (line 30)
     GUIDE cannot be launched because Java Swing is not available.

Line 30 in guide.m refers to:

     % error out if there is insufficient java support on this platform
     errormsg = javachk('swing', 'GUIDE');
     if ~isempty(errormsg)
         error(message('MATLAB:guide:NoSwingSupport', errormsg.message));
     end

I have installed version 7 update 9 of Java and confirmed that it works on the oracle website, yet the problem persists. I have also updated from Matlab R2010a Student Version to Matlab R2012b, yet the problem persists. Does anyone know of a workaround or solution to this issue?