Geographies of purpose built student accommodation: Exclusivity, precarity and (im)mobility

Abstract

Purpose Built Student Accommodation is increasingly dominating the urban landscapes of university locations. Yet a focus on student accommodation beyond “studentification” remains under-researched and under-analysed in geography and housing studies. Drawing upon pre-existing studies and new insights from the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland, this paper provides an analysis of the contemporary student accommodation sector and the distinct geographies this creates. The paper argues that the neoliberalisation of the student accommodation sector has (re)produced three distinct outcomes: exclusivity, precarity, and (im)mobility, themes of increasing attention within geography and beyond. In concluding, the paper argues that student accommodation is a key vector in which inequalities produced by neoliberalism are articulated and displayed, reflective of a wider global trend.