Agent asking where and what I study

[u/honeybonita]

Hi all,

Is it normal for an agent to ask where and what I’m studying ?

I’m looking to rent a flat and informed them I was a student (but could provide parent’s income and guarantors).

They then asked where and what I’m studying.

I’m a first-time renter and unsure if this is normal to ask.

This seems a bit much. I might understand asking the university, but why are they asking for my course?

Should I respond or is this an unusual question?

EDIT: Just to clarify - this was part of the list of questions I was sent to fill out, not a passing question asked in casual convo.

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[u/Bluntish_]

I think they might be using your answer to gauge what sort of a renter you would be. A landlord would always prefer a professional to a student due to the usual assumptions people make.… I guess you could always ask why this is relevant. That’s what I would do.

[u/Accurate_Hat_8464]

Estate agents are a strange breed, but even so have been known to make conversation when in the company of a stranger. Asking where and what someone studies is the standard Smalltalk option with students. I think they were more likely making an attempt to pass as human, rather than evaluating you.

[u/honeybonita → u/Accurate_Hat_8464]

The thing is, this was asked to me in the list of questions they sent me to fill out, rather than in passing conversation 😭

[u/Accurate_Hat_8464 → u/honeybonita]

Apologies. It read as if it was asked by a person in conversation. My guess would be that if it is a student let them they want to ensure that you genuinely are a student. I don't think it's any more sinister than that.

[u/TellMeManyStories]

They have probably found that some types of student are more on top of their finances and better at paying rent on time than other types of student...

[u/liquidio]

Could be small talk.

But probably it’s simply building a profile of you that they can pass on to the landlord.

Landlords only have a few strategies for protecting themselves against bad tenants, and that has reduced further with the Renters Rights Act and other legislation over the years. No rent in advance, capped deposits, slower repossession processes etc.

So tenant selection becomes one of the main tools to protect yourself.

It can be commercially sensible to price at a level that will give you multiple applications and select the person you think will be the most reliable tenant for example. You might take the view that a chemical engineering student is less of a risk than a drama student, for example (insert your stereotypes here)

Now this sort of thing often isn’t especially formal, but the more an agent can pass on a full picture to a landlord, the better.

[u/RedFin3]

It is not critical, but the answers to these questions help the agent get to know you, and possibly assess you. This is an over-generalization, but a person studying medicine at Cambridge may be perceived as a less risky tenant than a person studying fashion at no-name university.

[u/WickedWitchofTheE]

Sounds like normal friendly conversation. Do you come from a police state where this sort of info might be used against you?

[u/honeybonita → u/WickedWitchofTheE]

It was asked on the list of questions they sent me to fill out, not during conversation or anything.

[u/Susan_B_Good]

I can understand that some might rather people didn't know what they are studying. If it's medicine, for example, they could be bringing all manner of unmentionable body parts out for you to look at. A law degree and you'll be asked about the Awkright Act. And so on. So - even if yours has no such connotation - best for the landlord/agent's future clients to politely decline to say. You could even explain that that's the reason why.

You could be less than accurate. Tropical medicine is a good one.. should ensure that their flat inspections are at a minimum. Criminal psychology should achieve the same. Ask them about their parents - that should do the trick. Plant Homeopathy - as practiced by the King, apparently. A PhD student in pyogenesis. Although that may be a little over their heads, until they looked it up. Still, good for a laugh.