Fortunately, plain grey buildings with rabbit hutch halls are a thing of the past. In the last couple of decades in particular, Universities have started to build amazing residencies for their students that push the creative boundaries - check out this list of the world’s best student housing.

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For a location that is incredibly hard to beat, the Casa dell'Accademia in Switzerland frames a stunning view of the snow capped mountains of the Alps, and the modern architecture makes it a popular residency for the architectural students in the town.

Open galleries and shared community areas give a feeling of airiness and collaboration, and you can admire the wild life across the sweeping hills.

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Designed in 2003, the Spacebox project is a low cost student housing development in the Netherlands. Characterised by its futuristic design with vibrant retro shades of colours that turn these modular units from looking potentially plain and boring to visually explosive.

Each unit has its own kitchen, WC and shower room, car parking is provided but there’s also an extensive amount of storage for bicycles that encourages the use of eco friendly transport and personal wellbeing.

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Is this a five star hotel or student accommodation? From the looks of it, both. This trendy luxury student housing in Leeds features everything anyone could need, like a private cinema, an onsite gym, laundry, 24 hour concierge and a huge kitchen with 24/7 hot drinks. With all inclusive bills and free phone calls, the only thing students have to worry about is getting their assignments in on time.

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This isn’t your traditional idea of student housing. In Scottsdale, USA, the students of the famous Architect Frank Lloyd Wright's School of Architecture are tasked with designing and building their own shelters in the Sonoran desert. This allows the students to learn by doing, to appreciate the environment and figure out which materials work best for what they need to create.

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Students in Germany have the opportunity to live in the Olympic village in Munich, which is made up of 1800 apartments that are completely filled with students, giving a great sense of community and immersion in student life. Although students have been living here since 1972, the bungalows were torn down and rebuilt between 2007 and 2009, which truly makes it a modern hub for young creatives and thinkers.

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This amazing project has been created for low cost student accommodation in the centre of Copenhagen, floating in the harbour on a stacked platform. 15 student residencies complete with a shared garden and solar power are the only types of buildings that will never flood, which is essential in this time of rising sea levels and sets a precedent for the future.

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This student accommodation is not only visually pleasing with symmetry and interesting angles to admire, but the interior features rooms that are the exact same size with identical layouts. Open corridors run along the rear of the building contained behind a screen and give a huge amount of airiness and makes you feel at one with the gorgeous exterior of Paris.

This mobile housing terminal commissioned by a Catholic academy in Belgium revolves around several core principles, mobility, personality and educational design and was developed by the students. The design of the housing allows students to physically move their own room and attach it to other parts of the building using a plug in system. The minimalist design allows students to concentrate on their learning in a clean environment.

In response to a declining population, Japanese Universities are trying to use intrigue and appeal to international students for short and long term stays. This has resulted in both economically and culturally diverse students that benefit from the $80/a month accommodation with both shared and private facilities. Not only does this space comprise of dormitories but students can also utilise a gallery and event space in memory of the late Prince Takamado.

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In conclusion, students of the future have a lot to look forward to, as many countries are now looking towards both economically and ecologically beneficial designs for affordable student housing. Would you like to live in a floating unit like Urban Rigger? Or would you prefer building your own shelter like in the USA?