Andrew Melville Hall Is Getting Dramatically Pricier

Kaitlyn Kings

The University has recently faced criticism from students for a drastic price increase in the rent for Andrew Melville Hall. The hall has been an important part of student life for many students at the University since its construction was completed in 1967 (AMH, 2025).  

With its affordable prices, the hall has long been an essential option for students from working-class backgrounds. It is also popular with returning students, who may be unable to afford the expensive cost of renting an apartment in town.  

However, the University has recently announced an 18% price increase for the year of 2026-2027 (Change.org, 2026). This will see prices rising from £8,026 to upwards of £9,570 (a £1,500 jump), which exceeds the price increase in previous years. For reference, it was £208 this year (Change.org 2026). This price increase is dramatically higher than that of other halls. For example, the cost of a catered single room at McIntosh Hall has risen by only 4.9%, going from £9,119 to £9,570 (University of St Andrews, 2026). 

With this substantial price increase, many students are confused, as the University hasn’t announced any plans to improve the student experience at Andrew Melville Hall. With Andrew Melville Hall being a 20-minute walk to the United College buildings, often having poor maintenance and an infamous stuffiness, and lacking some of the facilities that other halls have — such as Whitehorn’s music room (University of St Andrews, 2026) — it being the most affordable student accommodation is only fair, all things considered.

There has been outrage in recent years over the cost of living for students in St Andrews, with some students having to ‘work so much that it was impacting [their] studies and [their lives]’ (The Courier, 2022). Furthermore, some students have been living in Dundee to avoid the expenses of St Andrews (The Courier, 2024), facing a thirty-minute commute each way, which affects their social lives and participation in extracurricular activities. According to HESA, in 2021, only 63.1% of students at the University came from state schools or colleges (HESA, 2021). The cost of living may be putting students off from enrolling at St Andrews, decreasing the diversity of the University. 

Despite this difficult situation for students, the University is offering support to students wishing to return to Andrew Melville Hall. In an email recently sent to students, the accommodation services stated: ‘The University has decided to put in place specific support for returning AMH students. This will take the form of a one-off rent reduction bursary to the value of £1,000 per student.’ While this is a positive step, this still does not take into account the financial struggles of students enrolling in 2026, who may also require affordable accommodation options. 

Perhaps it will no longer be a separate option on the accomodation application form, and students will be randomly placed in AMH just as any other hall. The question stands: is that fair? Unless there are plans over the summer to implement infrastructural improvements to the hall and/or additional support for its tenants’ lives, is it unclear why the University has made the cost-effective hall just as pricey as the ones more central in town.