"student flat"?

I was wondering if maybe someone here could clear up some confusion I've been having.  I am moving to Newcastle in July.  Because I am a compulsive planner, I've been looking at rentals on-line for a month or two.  Some of the flats are listed as "student flats" and in my communication with an estate agent, she also referred to a flat as a "student flat".  Can anyone tell me what the difference is between a student flat and a professional flat?  I am not a student (I'm actually a university lecturer), but I am interested in living close to campus because I like to walk to work.  Are student flats off-limits to me?  Do they have some sort of special tax status?  Or is it just a marketing thing? Any insight would be hugely appreciated!

full time students are exempt from council tax, so "student flats" will be properties that are occupied solely by students.  Things can get tricky with council tax when you have students sharing with non-students, so a lot of landlords and letting agencies will advertise flats and houses for students only.

I would also imagine that it would be decorated less nicely, slightly shabby, and slightly cheaper, as well as having the usual pitfalls of living with students.

Vicky

Weirdly enough, the ones that are one bedrooms (as opposed to house shares) seem to actually be more expensive than other, similar apartments. 

The tax thing totally helps make sense of it--thank you!!

I would guess that the house/flat owner gets to choose whether to rent to students or not - the students probably don't even get the option of the cheaper professional flats!