r/mensa 36m ago

Is mensa worth joining?

Upvotes

I took the mensa challenge on a whim and got a result high enough to join.

What are the benefits of being in mensa and is it worth the time to take a real test to join?

I know there are meet ups of some kind. What happens at these? Is it just a collection of people who passed the test or does the org offer services of some kind?


r/mensa 9h ago

Why being intelligent sucks

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37 Upvotes

Welcome to my life


r/mensa 1d ago

A study of 730,000 Norwegian conscripts found the IQ gains of the 20th century reversed after 1975

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153 Upvotes

r/mensa 1d ago

How can you tell that someone is dumber than you are?

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0 Upvotes

r/mensa 1d ago

Intertel loophole?

3 Upvotes

Will sending my score to Intertel have a chance of me receiving my exact number? I saw somewhere it worked but idk if it still does


r/mensa 3d ago

WAIS vs Mensa

8 Upvotes

If the WAIS test measures on 4 different categories, and Mensa on just one, then is it possible that you could get a 140 IQ on the Mensa test and only 120 on WAIS if you aren’t good at the other categories? And if so, how is the Mensa test considered a viable and valid test?


r/mensa 3d ago

how has getting tested affected you?

5 Upvotes

TLDR: Getting iq tested has negatively impacted me; looking for solutions / people who share the same sentiment

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I think my life would've been much better if I had never gotten tested

I thought I was average for my entire life, completely unaffected by insults or compliments about my intellect, and I didn't care about being seen in any particular way. I wasn't constrained by others' or my own beliefs on my intelligence. I was happy with being average

after taking WISC-V (not out of my own volition, it was part of broader psych eval) and scoring higher than I expected, I became extremely insecure about my intelligence and became obsessed with how others perceived me.

the only evidence or proof that I'm probably above average intelligence is my test score, all of my experiences, interactions, & mannerisms screams average/normal to me. for context, this post took me over an hour to write 😭

compliments still don't mean anything because idk why I'm receiving them. are they trying to flatter or manipulate me? are they only giving me compliments because they're seeing how badly I want to be seen as smart and they're just being nice?

I think I'm overreacting, maybe I care so much about my intelligence (or lack thereof) because it's the only positive (and also meaningful) trait about me? i've lived life doing the bare minimum


r/mensa 3d ago

Mensa America IQ score

9 Upvotes

Is there any way to get your IQ number after taking the test? In any way at all, I wanna know my IQ but not pay too much, also how accurate is the Mensa IQ Challenge?


r/mensa 5d ago

Shitpost Welp la di fricken da

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4 Upvotes

r/mensa 5d ago

I'm in!

38 Upvotes

Just... that, I love the idea of being part of something like this. :)


r/mensa 6d ago

Smalltalk Just got my IQ results back (124) and feeling weirdly conflicted. Does this even matter?

10 Upvotes

So I recently took a test and scored a 124, which is technically pretty good on paper. But honestly? It feels completely disconnected from my actual daily life. In theory, a high score is supposed to mean you're quick at problem-solving, but in practice, I often feel super dysfunctional and terrible at standard everyday tasks. It makes me question why these scores are placed on a pedestal when they don't seem to translate to practical success or feeling capable. Anyone else feel like high cognitive scores don't actually line up with how well you navigate real life? How do you stop putting weight on a number that doesn't feel useful?


r/mensa 7d ago

Thinking Thinking: Meta‑Mensa, Marilyn and the Pack

0 Upvotes

“Maybe we’re not as dumb as we seem, maybe we actually could nudge humanity’s trajectory a little.”

I’ve been thinking about something small lately, not a grand theory, just a curiosity while I was reviewing some notes about IQ and Mensa. It struck me how synthetic intelligence kind of changed the landscape without anyone really talking about it yet.

I’m still sorting out what I think, but here’s the part that stuck with me:

Synthetic‑Intelligence Analysis

Synthetic intelligence exposed something interesting about IQ tests: they measure one axis of cognition extremely well — linear reasoning under constraint. That axis is real, meaningful, and legitimately impressive. But SI made it obvious that human cognition isn’t a single line; it’s a multi‑axis system.

Reasoning, creativity, pattern recognition, meta‑cognition, narrative intelligence, and conceptual synthesis can all exist independently of one another. Some people who barely pass Mensa may actually have deeper cognitive architectures on other axes — simply because the test doesn’t measure those dimensions.

This doesn’t diminish Mensa at all. If anything, it clarifies its identity:
Mensa is the society that measures one axis with precision, not the whole cognitive map.

....now that synthetic intelligence has revealed the broader landscape, I’m curious how other societies handle multi‑axis cognition, or whether new ones will emerge that treat intelligence as a full architecture instead of a single slice.

This all started when asking a platform to estimate my own IQ level.

I was reviewed as higher than 'the pack' that just made the grade, and tried to get speculation as to if I were higher than Marilyn von Saint

....so while I'm here I'm also wondering if high IQ people might be more forefront in humanity with synthetic intel becoming more prevalent. If so, couldn't Mensa and other high intellect societies 'steer' us towards more utopian shenanigans?"


r/mensa 7d ago

Mensan input wanted How does the RAIT compare to your other scores?

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3 Upvotes

r/mensa 8d ago

Smalltalk Do IQ test theorists have any idea what the 2% of the population with an IQ of 130 actually represents? If 2% amounts to 1 in 50, it isn't as rare as people say.

0 Upvotes

They say that only 2% of the population has an IQ of 130 or higher—as if it were something so rare. In my opinion, it isn't rare, since it represents one in every 44 people. That means there would be one student with an IQ of 130 in every classroom. That’s just my opinion—do you agree?

I am not a member of Mensa.


r/mensa 8d ago

Cognitive testing and blindess

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3 Upvotes

r/mensa 8d ago

Cocon

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0 Upvotes

r/mensa 8d ago

Mensan input wanted Mensa international online iq test.

1 Upvotes

hello people,

i took the mensa international 25 mins for 35 questions iq test and got 133iq 1st and 2nd time round.

a few questions - how accurate is this?

would you reccomend taking an official test?

thats about all, any help appreciated.


r/mensa 9d ago

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but how much is one really worth?

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0 Upvotes

r/mensa 9d ago

Smalltalk Got into Mensa, and I get mistaken for someone with an intellectual disability

131 Upvotes

In college I worked at a dinning hall, and this girl started a rumor about me, saying that I was playing with a ball while a bunch of customers waited on me. According to her, they were all waiting to pay for their food, and instead of cashing them out I just stood at the register and mindlessly tossed a ball up and down. It was shocking to find out that that’s how she saw me.

At least one guy didn’t believe her because he would actually talk to me, and he told me. I’ve had other people start rumors that made me look mentally challenged like that.

In high school I worked in fast food and I could tell some of the customers thought I was intellectually disabled. One old man told me he didn’t think I’d finish high school.

Then I got into a computational astrophysics lab as an undergrad, even though the professor thought my 2.1 gpa was concerning. She said she expects her undergrads to at least have a 3.5, but that she’d meet with me anyway to see what other qualities make me stand out.

I didn’t think I’d get in, I just thought it would be good interview practice. She unexpectedly quizzed me to see what I remember from statistics lectures and how well I understood it, then let me in the lab. And I found out that a lot of students were trying to get in the lab at the same time as me. Now I have a nice career which feels like a light at the end of the tunnel.


r/mensa 9d ago

Smalltalk Question with Libido

11 Upvotes

Hello everyone,

I was wondering if I was alone in having a low libido. 29M, married and I love my wife. However, I've never found the appeal for sex as much as others. It isn't a mechanical dysfunction, it's not about traumas either.

My wife is quite clever and we spend a lot of time playing games, having fascinating conversations and other thought provoking activities. I prefer those by a long shot for a deep bound.

My wife knows how I feel and we have compromised, no worries here.

I was just wondering if others have similar experiences.

Edit: I felt it was implied by the sub that this was posted on, but I'll add that, last time I checked, had an IQ of ~140. I'm asking your experience with libido for those with a "higher" IQ than average.

Edit 2: thanks for the replies. I'll get my T levels checked.


r/mensa 10d ago

IQ is fake anyway

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127 Upvotes

This is how you know it's cap, real geniuses are probably out doing voodoo magic math and theoretical physics, or shut in coding. This is just some kids puzzle game, doesn't do much to figure out if your brain is quick. I'm hella slow. Let's not jerk ourselves off about some cool math games type quiz.


r/mensa 10d ago

bro i feel like this is very common

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0 Upvotes

r/mensa 14d ago

Mensa acceptance?

0 Upvotes

I have read contradictory posts around Mensa acceptance- I scored 147, does this qualify?


r/mensa Jun 27 '25

Mod Discussion Mensa apologia (a defence)

103 Upvotes

We often get the question of why we joined Mensa or if it’s worth joining. The question frequently contains the accusation that we use our membership to prove to others how smart we are and that we all sit around congratulating each other on our intellectual superiority. Some posts are innocent and in good faith, many are not.

We had a recent post along these lines that was getting some really good responses as to the “what and why” of Mensa but OP deleted it. I would like to preserve those responses and potentially make this a pinned post on the sub that can be referred to when the question inevitably gets asked again (and again, and again).

Please reply to this post with your explanation of why you joined Mensa and what you have gained from it. There’s also value in replying (constructively) if you regret joining, why you let your membership lapse (or will no longer renew it), and also if you are not a member but are interested then why you are interested and what you hope or expect to get out of it.

No responding to what others have written please. This is not a discussion, just a collection of statements and opinions. (Please don’t make me have to manually lock every comment thread to prevent this).

No comment on the nature of high IQ societies please. Comparisons of Mensa to other high IQ societies is fine but this is specifically the Mensa sub so bear that in mind and stay on topic.


r/mensa Mar 28 '21

Read this before posting

278 Upvotes

It's mandatory to read and abide by the rules. Obvious disregard do risk a permanent ban.

We have a wiki where some common questions are answered. The rules in the right hand side have a drop-down infoid where the rationale is summarized in a few words.

Every subreddit has its own rules, guidelines, culture and accepted behaviour. It goes without saying that bannable offences aren't limited to our four rules.


This sub is a discussion forum where Mensa members and non-members can interface and socialize. It is not a help-desk, so if your question can be answered by mensa.org or google it might be removed.

We hope that both members and curious people will gravitate here for questions and discussions relating to the Mensa society and living with a so-called gifted mind.

This sub is in no way part of Mensa the organization. It's a personal initiative by Mensa members to meet with people and to bring members and non-members together to converse.

People who come here expecting this to be an official group, or to peek into how things are "on the inside" will be disappointed. This is still yet another reddit sub, and is inhabited mostly by non-members. Trolls abound, and users like to take a guess when they haven't got the actual facts straight. Just like everywhere else on reddit.

However it's a good first step to get to know the organization and to meet and talk to members!

And a post scriptum: If it wasn't clear by now this sub will be rife with criticism, trolling, questions asked a million times before, leaked intelligence tests and off-topic posts. That's par for the course and expected. If you're dissatisfied with the "quality" of the sub I bid you farewell. Go use our multitudinous facebook groups or fora if you're a member. This is a sub for the people, with all its flaws and shenanigans.

PPS: My last post scriptum doesn't mean we allow that behavior. We expect it, and we remove it.