Intellectual property and making money from your dissertation project (application)

I asked my course leader this very question in preparation for my third year. He told me that universities own such projects so you wouldn't be able to develop it further.
However, he also said that an application could be made to the university to acquire ownership of the project. He stressed that no mention should be made of plans to commercialize the project as the uni would be unlikely to give up rights to a project they can profit from.

Thanks for the help! If you dont mind clearing it up though... So the university will own my project forever or just until I have graduated? If I kept the plans to commercialise private until the end of the course could I then potentially make money from it?
One of the project options is to make an app for a local business, so if they offered me money upon completion I would have to make the uni aware/give the earnings to the uni?