£582 for self-catered flats, and £510 for student houses.įinancial Assistance and Considerations Groups of students outside David Russell Hall, 1989-1990. Student residence fees varied in the 1985-6 academic year, catered Halls of Residence fees ranged from £847 to £936.As indicated in figure 2, larger cohorts of students were occupying halls and were increasingly integrating genders. Many students lived in halls familiar to us today (University Hall, Mcintosh Hall, JBH, DRA, etc.), providing the chance to meet new students and socialise over meals and other activities.Students would reside in a range of Halls of Residence, self-catered flats, student houses and private lodgings.

Morning Female students relaxing in a student dorm, ca. Although such issues were yet to be reflected in the History curriculum, female undergraduate historians enjoyed an enriching academic and social life, mixing with both genders and engaging in activities that parallel much of student life today.

Indeed, the small town provided a close nexus to intellectually and politically engage with contemporary issues. The 1980s proved a fruitful and exciting decade for St Andrews undergrads – not just because the decade commenced with a University Challenge win in 1983! As the University expanded its economic resources to promote St Andrews as a reputable research institution, whilst simultaneously welcoming more students internationally, so student life was enriched with a new distinctive outlook.įor female undergraduates, St Andrews became a prominent place to explore gender parity and rights, the popularity of the British Women’s Liberation Movement (WLM) during the seventies reaching and being actively propelled by students of St Andrews. What was it like to be a woman student of History at St Andrews in the 1980s? Taking inspiration from popular modern day ‘Day in the Life’ blog posts and YouTube videos, a group of current undergraduates explored personal papers, University Calendars, photographs, and records from the University’s Special Collections, to try to bring to life the experiences of women History undergraduates at St Andrews.

Personal historian tutorial