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How does Cambridge view IQ?

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I think it's kind of pointless mentioning. Cambridge don't care if you're in Mensa. It may be an achievement, but not in the sense that you competed against others, or really pushed yourself - it's just a club you were able to join because you have a high IQ. I reckon that a lot of the people I know at Cambridge have high enough IQs to join, but just don't care for it. Personally, my IQ is above the threshold, but I don't really see what I can gain from it.

Cambridge would be more interested to know how you've expressed and used your intelligence, not about the shiny certificate you have to say that you are intelligent.
Do you realise how misleading your thread title is?
Congratulations, you're good at filling in IQ tests.
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GregoryJL
Aside: What is the point of high-IQ societies besides as a discreet means of 'letting it be known' your IQ is of a given level? I mean, how many puzzles/poems/articles/whatever else MENSA does require you to be in the top 2% of an IQ test to understand or enjoy?

On topic: I suspect people generally won't care, or in fact view it negatively.
Only 66% of Cambridge students are intelligent enough to get in Mensa....

It is worth bragging about, but don't make it your number 1 selling point. You will have a lot more to offer than being a member of a club, but it is worth mentioning that you are clever if you can also show that you can apply the intelligence!
Mensa tested a large sample of Cambridge students a couple of years ago. 66% of them qualified to join to society.
Lola123
Bit of a weird question but the other day in maths class there was a discussion on IQ and this led on to talking about Mensa. Subsequently it came out that I'm a member of Mensa. It was embarassing but I think that it is an achievement and I'm proud of it. However my teacher told me that IQ is no more important that emotional intelligence and that I should not metion this to any university I apply to or any teachers etc. Cambridge as it is my first choice and I'm soon going to be starting the application process so I just wondered what the general opinon would be. :smile:


IQ came up in my general interview (via another subject - long story and too personal to discuss on a public board). i don't think it hurt my application, but i wouldn't advise going in bragging about it.

maybe mention it in the last section of your SAQ but relate it back to your course or the intellectual challenge of uni.

remember they want to see who you are, how you think, your PS is your chance to lead them to certain topics.
I think mentioning your IQ in your personal statement isn't the best thing... You can ask your teacher to put it in your reference? Just a suggestion...
FyreFight
Not really. Most people of above-average intelligence could get into MENSA if they wanted to, it's not exactly elite. The key to getting a decent score on the IQ test is largely to do with practice and familiarity with the questions, not actually being particularly smart.

IQ is inherently flawed that way.


this.
To qualify for Mensa you have to be in the top 2% of the IQ spectrum. So taking into account that people can practice IQ tests etc etc, that top 2% bracket is still fluid and ever changing. If more people were scoring higher through practice, the top 2% score would be higher and harder to attain.

There have been numerous studies on cultural bias of IQ tests which have been proved and disproved but are too long to get in to on here. The bottom line is that they are a good guide to raw ability. The point is though that it doesn't really matter what raw ability you have - its how you use it that counts!

That 33% of Cambridge students can't get into Mensa is to their credit, not their detriment. They are clearly fulfilling their potential and making the most of what they have - unlike someone at a redbrick with a genius IQ who is lazy or hasn't found effective ways to study.

The key to genius is not just having a high IQ, it is doing significant things in the real world along with that. So by that measure, yes, IQ is a flawed scale.

FYI I qualified for Mensa but didn't join as it is elitist, snobbish, and mostly a sort of self-affirmation society for people whose only thing to brag about is being a member of Mensa!
in-swinging corner
Mensa tested a large sample of Cambridge students a couple of years ago. 66% of them qualified to join to society.

That's not a source.
in-swinging corner
FYI I qualified for Mensa but didn't join as it is elitist, snobbish, and mostly a sort of self-affirmation society for people whose only thing to brag about is being a member of Mensa!
But you still felt like telling us you qualified :p:
~charmaine~
I think mentioning your IQ in your personal statement isn't the best thing... You can ask your teacher to put it in your reference? Just a suggestion...
I think that's a terrible idea.
It isn't a source, but I have neither the time nor the inclination to trawl through internet pages to find the report!

Take my word for it though as I assure you it is 100% correct, in the trial in question 66% of Cambridge students were in the top 2% IQ bracket.
I sincerely doubt they care.
in-swinging corner
Only 66% of Cambridge students are intelligent enough to get in Mensa....

It is worth bragging about, but don't make it your number 1 selling point. You will have a lot more to offer than being a member of a club, but it is worth mentioning that you are clever if you can also show that you can apply the intelligence!

You're confusing intelligence with performance on a specific type of test.
I went to a redbrick. There were three types of people there

1) Local people who didn't want to leave home for financial or other reasons.

2) intelligent people who haven't reached their potential

3) people who have found their level at that university.



Re the person above who said that Cambridge students wouldn't care. Of course they wouldn't. They are at one of the best universities in the world so why should they? But the point remains.

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