Knobheads doing a phd always hav to tell everyone about it - iin?

In the course of life I sometimes meet people who are studying for the academic qualification PhD (also known as a Doctorate).

Now that's all well and good.

I'm happy for them to study in depth something like the 'Prevalence and diversity of anti-microbial resistance in fingernail dirt in southern brown haired Tanzanian Chimpanzees' just so they can call themselves 'Doctor'.

What really annoys me is this: I notice that time after time, after time, I meet someone who happens to be doing a PhD and they ALWAYS have to make sure they mention it to me - usually in the first or second sentence of the VERY FIRST conversation I ever have with them.

More often than not they won't actually talk much about what they are studying, it seems they just want the kudos out of saying, 'Oh by the way, I'm doing a PhD...'

Which seems to be just subtle way of saying, "I'm just letting you know I'm more intelligent than you' without actually saying it.

I am happy for them they are studying for a PhD, I really am, but is it really necessary to mention it within the first 30 seconds of meeting someone?

Is it Normal?