It was a rite of passage – students lived in squalid digs akin to the falling-down hovel in 1980s comedy show The Young Ones.
But times have changed. New apartments in Norwich are now on the market for the September freshers which are more like luxury hotel rooms - with facilities to match.
Crown Place, newly finished and converted above the old BHS which is currently Primark, offers en suite rooms together with glamorous extras such as a on-site gym, a cinema room and a games room.
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But the accommodation, stylishly furnished and with modern fitted kitchens boasting built-in appliances, comes at a price - rents can top £150 a week, double that charged at a more traditional student let in a terraced house.
In the famous television series The Young Ones a group of mates attending the fictional Scumbag College lived in a house in dingy conditions, a far cry from what is on offer in the city today.
Nick Taylor, chairman of the Norwich & District Association of Estate Agents and managing of Hadley Taylor, said the expectations of students had changed hugely.
"The trend certainly seems to be moving to more up market student accommodation with en-suite rooms in new build developments," he said.
"Students increasingly want a higher standard of accommodation, or at least their parents want them to have it, and this is especially the case with overseas students whose fees underpin the higher education business model.
"This does not mean there isn't a place for traditional, shared student houses in the city to suit students on lower budgets. Some smaller landlords have divested out of student accommodation in recent years and the market has become more corporate in it's make up, but this is more due to changes in stamp duty and mortgage tax relief than for any other reason."
And another new build is taking shape in the city to meet the growing demand for high end student homes with work on a former car park in Barn Road scheduled to be finished next year.
Pablo Fanque House, a new build student block on All Saints Green, set the benchmark when it opened last year with extra facilities such as a launderette. But experts have warned the trend could see landlords renting more basic digs finding it harder with youngsters' expectations so high.
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