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Princess Kate pictured on graduation day at St. Andrews University© Anwar Hussein Collection/ROTA

Royal university digs! Prince William and Kate Middleton's very basic halls, King Charles' messy dorm, more

Discover where royalty choose to live at university

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Senior Lifestyle & Fashion Writer
Lifestyle Features Editor
September 22, 2024
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September marks a milestone month for first-year students across the country, many of which choose to live in halls of residence during their freshers year. 

While attending higher education post-college was rare for royalty before King Charles became the first British monarch to achieve a university degree, many members of the royal family have since followed in his footsteps. 

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Prince William famously met his wife Kate, the Princess of Wales whilst studying at St Andrews University, while Princess Eugenie opted for affordable student housing during her study years at Newcastle University.

Meanwhile, King Charles, Zara Tindall, and Lady Louise Windsor all moved away to continue their studies, swapping the royal residences they were accustomed to in favour of much more modest student accommodation. 

Princess Elisabeth of Belgium has just started her postgraduate degree in Public Policy at Harvard and may choose to live in the Ivy League university's on-campus accommodation during her studies. 

From affordable halls to luxury royal homes, see where royalty choose to live during their degrees...

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prince charles uni halls

King Charles

King Charles studied anthropology, archaeology and history at Cambridge University where he lived in Trinity College. 

One snap taken inside his lodgings in 1967 showed the young prince sitting at a desk strewn with papers, while a lamp and family photo can be seen in the background. 

The room is decorated with floral curtains and wooden furniture, with a fireplace on one wall.

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prince william kate middleton halls

The Prince and Princess of Wales

Both Prince William and Kate lived in St Salvators Hall of Residence in their first year of university at St Andrews, which is where they met. 

The rooms would have been a far cry from the stunning homes William was used to growing up, with photos shared from inside the halls in 2000 showing the basic furnishings provided to students.

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Lady Louise Windsor in a coat and hat© Mark Cuthbert

Lady Louise Windsor

Following in the footsteps of her cousin, Prince William, Lady Louise Windsor is also studying at St Andrews. 

While the royal is believed to have moved to shared housing, in her first year she also lived at St Salvadors - affectionately known as Sallies. 

The £8k-per-year halls arecatered digs meaning no last-minute pesto pasta for the King's niece. Meals are served in the dining room Hogwarts-style with the option to make light snacks in their shared kitchen.

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Princess Elisabeth inside the library at Oxford University© Getty

Princess Elisabeth of Belgium

International students are encouraged to rent with Harvard University Housing due to non-US students experiencing difficulties securing housing due to a lack of credit history in the US.

Because of this, the Princess may prefer to live on campus in Harvard's "most affordable and most convenient" graduate housing. 

While affordability will pose no problem for the Belgian heir, Elisabeth may wish to immerse herself in Harvad's culture at one of the university's graduate halls - Child, Conant, Perkins, and Richards - which will also be one of the safest options for the royal as she studies overseas. 

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princess eugenie uni

Princess Eugenie

During her time at Newcastle University, Princess Eugenie is said to have lived in the Castle Leazes student residence, where rooms ranged from £102 to £175 per week.

It’s likely the Princess opted for a single en suite room, which would have also been catered and has access to a shared kitchen.

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lady amelia windsor uni

Lady Amelia Windsor

Lady Amelia Windsor studied at Edinburgh University.

The model previously shared a look inside her student digs with a selfie in her bedroom, which had photos pinned onto the walls and around the mirror, and fairy lights hanging on the walls.

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St James' Palace side view© Alamy

Princess Beatrice

It's safe to say Princess Beatrice didn't have the average student experience, deciding against staying in halls of residence in favour of an apartment within St James' Palace. 

As she was only studying at nearby Goldsmiths University, it made sense for Beatrice to stay in her royal residence.

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prince achileas uni

Princess Marie Chantal of Greece

Princess Marie Chantal shared a photo many parents could relate to over the summer in 2019, showing how they were preparing their son Prince Achileas for his studies with a trip to US homeware store Bed, Bath, and Beyond. 

"Dormlife," she captioned the photo. The Princess later shared a photo of the teenager in his new room, which was equipped with a single bed, bed and chest of drawers.

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meghan markle uni

Meghan Markle

Long before meeting Prince Harry or embarking on her acting career, Meghan Markle studied theatre and international studies at Northwestern University. 

While there, the future royal lived in the North Mid-Quads dorm, which is home to 85 students across 31 double rooms and 23 single rooms, and has a communal lounge area.

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peter phillips uni

Peter Phillips and Zara Tindall

Princess Anne's children both studied at the University of Exeter. 

While Zara has a degree in Physiotherapy, her older brother studied Sports Science. It is not known where they lived on campus, but they would have several accommodation options to choose from, including Lopes Hall and Pennsylvania Court, which has single en-suite rooms with a utility room and on-site catering.

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