German Phrase
Was hast du studiert?
Meaning
The sentence asks the listener which subject or field they studied at university or college. It is a direct way to inquire about someone's academic background.
When to use
Use this question when you meet a new acquaintance, during a job interview, or when catching up with a friend and you want to know what they studied. It works in both informal (du) and semi‑formal contexts, but avoid it in very formal settings unless you know the person well.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Washastdustudiert?
Was (interrogative pronoun)
‘Was’ means ‘what’ and introduces a question about a thing or a subject.
Hast (auxiliary ‘haben’)
In the perfect tense, ‘haben’ is used as the auxiliary verb; here it is conjugated in 2nd‑person singular (du).
Du (subject pronoun)
The personal pronoun ‘du’ is the subject of the sentence and follows the auxiliary in a question.
Studiert (past participle)
‘Studieren’ (to study) forms its perfect with ‘haben’; the past participle is ‘studiert’.
Verb‑second word order in questions
In German yes‑no and wh‑questions, the finite verb (hast) occupies the first position, followed by the subject (du).
🗨In Conversation
Was hast du studiert?
What did you study?
Ich habe Biologie studiert.
I studied biology.
✕Common Mistakes
Was war du studiert?
‘War’ is the past tense of ‘sein’; the perfect of ‘studieren’ uses ‘haben’, not ‘sein’.
Was hast du studieren?
In a perfect‑tense question you need the past participle ‘studiert’, not the infinitive.
Was du hast studiert?
The correct order in a wh‑question is auxiliary‑subject, not subject‑auxiliary.
↔Alternatives
Welches Fach hast du studiert?
Which subject did you study?
Was war dein Studienfach?
What was your field of study?
Was hast du an der Uni studiert?
What did you study at university?
Cultural Tip
In German‑speaking countries it is common to ask about someone's studies early in a conversation, but the question can feel personal. If you are unsure, you can soften it with ‘Darf ich fragen, was du studiert hast?’ (May I ask what you studied?). Also remember that the informal ‘du’ is only used when you have a familiar relationship; otherwise use the formal ‘Sie’: ‘Was haben Sie studiert?’