EXCLUSIVE: Discover the Secret 'Codename' Prince William Used to Go 'Undetected' at University

Although he was already one of the world's most recognizable young royals, an unusual agreement between the university and the British press – coupled with his use of the low-profile alias "Steve" – helped shield him from much of the attention that had defined his childhood.

Dr Brian Lang, who served as Principal and Vice-Chancellor of St Andrews during William's time there, has described the extensive efforts made to protect the prince's privacy, revealing that cooperation between the university community and the media proved remarkably effective.

He said: "Andrew Neil, the Lord Rector of the university, being a very experienced newspaperman, helped us negotiate a deal with the British press, whereupon they would leave William alone in return for a photo opportunity once a semester. And on the whole, that worked."

Lang explained that protecting William's privacy became an immediate priority once it was confirmed he would attend the university, although the policy extended to every student on campus rather than the prince alone.

He added, "One thing that I did as soon as we knew that William was going to be a student was to warn the student body that we expected them to respect the privacy of information.

"So, I made it quite clear to the students by doing an interview to the student newspaper, in which I made it quite clear that we would take a very, very dim view of any inappropriate information being passed on. Not just about William, but about any other student."

Lang stressed that safeguarding personal information was fundamental to the university's culture.

He noted: "This was not just a privacy issue for William, but for his fellow students as well. The privacy warning and the privacy injunctions were applied to the whole student body. We needed to take care of the privacy of all of the students, all of the staff, as well as William, and again, on the whole, that worked."

Looking back on William's four years at St Andrews, Lang praised both students and staff for resisting the temptation to profit from the future king's presence.