List MENSA On Application?

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CPIstan

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I'm a member of Mensa, and thought that it might spice up my EC's.

What say you?
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mapandterritory said:
Mensa is kind of a joke, imo. Unless you're actively involved in meetings and so on, I wouldn't even bother mentioning it.
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Yeah don't you have to pay to be in Mensa or something? Seems like a scam to me.

Congrats on the badass IQ though, you're obviously a smart dude. Just doesn't seem like Mensa is a really reputable membership to me. But I have been wrong 100% of the time before.
 
I'd definitely list if I felt I could have a meaningful conversation about my membership. If the only thing I had to say about it was "Well, I wanted to be in the smart people club", I might worry about looking a little pretentious if asked about it. But that's just me. What does your professional school advisor say?
 
BigBlueBear said:
Yeah don't you have to pay to be in Mensa or something? Seems like a scam to me.

Congrats on the badass IQ though, you're obviously a smart dude. Just doesn't seem like Mensa is a really reputable membership to me. But I have been wrong 100% of the time before.
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Basically.

Also, it's just the top 2% anyway. (Although I only put so much weight on IQ.)
 
mapandterritory said:
Basically.

Also, it's just the top 2% anyway. (Although I only put so much weight on IQ.)
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I'm not sure how long ago this was changed or if they required re-testing after it was implemented, but they used to let people in based on SAT/ACT/GRE/LSAT score (not sure about the MCAT).

Which honestly is pretty surprising to me, because plenty of people absolutely destroyed the ACT/SAT
 
BlueLabel said:
I'm not sure how long ago this was changed or if they required re-testing after it was implemented, but they used to let people in based on SAT/ACT/GRE/LSAT score (not sure about the MCAT).

Which honestly is pretty surprising to me, because plenty of people absolutely destroyed the ACT/SAT
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Most people I know qualified for Mensa because of their IQ score, although some also scored high on the SAT, etc.

@Halogas: Perhaps you didn't quite understand what I meant (edit: if that was sarcasm, I'm tired!). 1/50 is not really that exceptional in the grand scheme of things. I am not demeaning people who qualify for Mensa but not for more selective groups. Again, I also don't put much weight on IQ (e.g., Richard Feynman).
 
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Stick it in a collective "awards" heading with other awards and scholarships. Not really important enough to list as its own activity unless you are very active with it.
 
MENSA means nothing. It just makes you look like an a55 for trying to say you have a high IQ, which for MENSA isn't actually that high. MENSA is a self-esteem association and nothing more.
 
These are good points you guys make.

Reason I ask is because med schools are screening us all for aptitude, whether we like it or not. Seems to reason that saying "hey, look at me, little goody two shoes with a brain" would be a goo idea, all BS aside. You know what I'm saying'?
 
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CPIstan said:
These are good points you guys make.

Reason I ask is because med schools are screening us all for aptitude, whether we like it or not. Seems to reason that saying "hey, look at me, little goody two shoes with a brain" would be a goo idea, all BS aside. You know what I'm saying'?
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MCAT and GPA >>>>>>>>>>>>>> MENSA status/IQ in terms of aptitude for success in medical school
 
You listing MENSA is like a pornstar listing his penis size IMHO.
 
Join MENSA and never do anything with it? MAYBE list it as an award.
Join MENSA and become active in the local membership group, take leadership roles, maybe get a charity drive or two rolling? Add it to your activities.
 
CPIstan said:
These are good points you guys make.

Reason I ask is because med schools are screening us all for aptitude, whether we like it or not. Seems to reason that saying "hey, look at me, little goody two shoes with a brain" would be a goo idea, all BS aside. You know what I'm saying'?
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No dude, your allowance into MENSA will prove nothing to medical schools. It proves nothing in the sense of being able to do well in or even pass medical school classes.

Soak this in:

"Nothing in the world will take away persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than an unsuccessful man with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent."

-Calvin Coolidge
 
Ironmandoc said:
MENSA means nothing. It just makes you look like an a55 for trying to say you have a high IQ, which for MENSA isn't actually that high. MENSA is a self-esteem association and nothing more.
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That wouldn't be like plastering ironman stuff on your screen name and avatar, would it?

:idea:
 
Believe it or not, the smart people at MENSA have designed a website with information on how to join, including which tests qualify (the MCAT does not).
 
I concur with others in this thread. Assuming you were not active with your local chapter, it will, in my opinion, simply look pretentious and arrogant, especially when one considers the stigma surrounding MENSA (as LizzyM so aptly articulated).

That said, if you were active in your local chapter and felt it to be a meaningful activity, I may consider listing it, as long as one feels they can describe their participation in a way that does not make them out to be a real-life incarnation of the characters in that one Woody Allen classic (sorry, everyone, I could not resist). For example, unknown to most, MENSA puts a strong emphasis on community service and many chapters make it a major component of their activities; if one is a part of such a chapter, I would emphasize that.

And for those mocking MENSA and similar organizations, attempt to restrain your assumptions for a bit. Though some MENSA members may posses an obnoxious intellectual superiority complex, others -- especially the younger members -- just simply want the community.

(DISCLAIMER: Though not a MENSA member -- I have too much of an irrational insecurity surrounding IQ tests to attempt it -- I have been involved in gifted education/whatever one wants to call it advocacy since dropping out of high school. I have strong feelings.)
 
I'd imagine that most of the people who have made it far enough to be serious applicants for med school would also qualify for MENSA membership if they really wished to be in the organization. For example, knowing my IQ score as a kid I would probably qualify. However, I've never looked into joining because the whole organization seems like an ego stroking club for pseudo-intellectuals. Essentially it's for people who want to be recognized as smart but have nothing to show for their supposed intellect, so they join an organization that gives them a card that says "I'm smart" and meetings where they do pointless logic puzzles to feel smart.

Achievements are what really matters. Hence why med schools want to see high GPAs, high MCAT scores, excellent ECs, and excellent LORs instead of nothing more than a score on an IQ test.

Anyway, the point of all this is that I doubt it will give you any kind of boost at all and may very well backfire since MENSA tends to be looked down upon by academics for the reasons I listed. The key thing to realize is that grad school/med school IS a genius club. No one gives a **** about your IQ at that level because it's just assumed by default that you're a really smart guy. All people care about is how well you're performing. And honestly, there is a point where IQ stops mattering and how well you perform as a scientist or doctor depends entirely upon your skills, dedication, and your connections.
 
CPIstan said:
That wouldn't be like plastering ironman stuff on your screen name and avatar, would it?

:idea:
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If I recall the percentage of the US population who run marathons is something like 0.1%, and those crazy enough to swim 2.4 miles and then bike 112 miles before are far, far fewer. I think ironman >>>> Mensa and he should be proud. Hell, I'm proud of my marathons even though I'll be the first to admit I wouldn't, or couldn't, do an im.
 
CPIstan said:
I'm a member of Mensa, and thought that it might spice up my EC's.

What say you?
Click to expand...

I wouldn't list it. A ton of med student qualify based on SAT and other standardized test scores, so it nothing too special, and comes off very pretentious. Truly smart people never have the need to advertise that fact, or join orgnizations to stroke their egos. It can rub folks the wrong way.
 
Law2Doc said:
I wouldn't list it. A ton of med student qualify based on SAT and other standardized test scores, so it nothing too special, and comes off very pretentious. Truly smart people never have the need to advertise that fact, or join orgnizations to stroke their egos. It can rub folks the wrong way.
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MENSA does not/no longer take(s) the SAT or ACT as a qualifier. It also no longer takes the GRE.

(It does still take the LSAT and GMAT)

That said, while I agree that listing it is a bad idea and it does tend to rub folks the wrong way, once again, not everyone who joins MENSA is doing it to "stroke their egos".
 
Starlightembers said:
That said, while I agree that listing it is a bad idea and it does tend to rub folks the wrong way, once again, not everyone who joins MENSA is doing it to "stroke their egos".
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As you noted, it's also a social club, so some members join to get something else stroked.

Did you hear about the ***** who joined MENSA? Give her $50 and she will blow your mind!
 
CPIstan said:
I'm a member of Mensa, and thought that it might spice up my EC's.

What say you?
Click to expand...

Better not. Have you ever been to a Mensa meeting? I have... Twice. For the life of me I can't figure out why I attended the 2nd one. I probably thought the first meeting was a fluke. Let me say... awkward social misfits. High IQ, maybe, but not the most functional people. I think the dirty looking one in my meetings may have a philosophy professor, and another one looked like he belonged in the sex offender registry. Most of the rest were mostly under-achievers who needed to convince themselves they were smart. Let me tell you I didn't renew my membership. I thought: "What the hell! I pay money for this?" Smart, in a way; maybe. Smart and well-rounded? Very few Mensans.
 
MT Headed said:
As you noted, it's also a social club, so some members join to get something else stroked.

Did you hear about the ***** who joined MENSA? Give her $50 and she will blow your mind!
Click to expand...

If I were to give a ***** $50, it's no my mind I want her to blow.
 
Ironmandoc said:
How many Ironmans have you done?

Exactly...
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You said "MENSA means nothing. It just makes you look like an a55 for trying to say you have a high IQ, which for MENSA isn't actually that high. MENSA is a self-esteem association and nothing more."

What you said was insulting. I told you how some people view your little triathlete club. If you don't like strong opinions, you shouldn't post any of yours, cowboy.

Fraternal penis measuring clubs aside, I'm not impressed by marathons, swimming, etc. I have been an endurance athlete for over 10 years, cross country running, road cycling, and mountain biking. My average hours training per week are around 15. I don't compete, and I don't have an ironman beer cozy and matching underwear to announce it to the world.
 
My response was to your post about MENSA and nothing more. You made it personal. Stop while you're ahead like everyone said
 
I think it's less an issue with my avatar (which is the dot-m ironman logo) than it is that people actually know what the Mensa symbol is

🙂
 
Starlightembers said:
MENSA does not/no longer take(s) the SAT or ACT as a qualifier. It also no longer takes the GRE.

(It does still take the LSAT and GMAT)

That said, while I agree that listing it is a bad idea and it does tend to rub folks the wrong way, once again, not everyone who joins MENSA is doing it to "stroke their egos".
Click to expand...

Doesn't matter if MENSA still takes SAT, it did when most adcom members were premed, and they will still assume it's something a huge number of folks on the interview trail could get. While I'm sure not everyone who joins MENSA does it to stroke their egos, enough do that that is the overarching perception. It simply looks to some people like you need validation of your intelligence, and that rubs enough people the wrong way that I would leave it off any resume.
 
CPIstan said:
You said "MENSA means nothing. It just makes you look like an a55 for trying to say you have a high IQ, which for MENSA isn't actually that high. MENSA is a self-esteem association and nothing more."

What you said was insulting. I told you how some people view your little triathlete club. If you don't like strong opinions, you shouldn't post any of yours, cowboy.

Fraternal penis measuring clubs aside, I'm not impressed by marathons, swimming, etc. I have been an endurance athlete for over 10 years, cross country running, road cycling, and mountain biking. My average hours training per week are around 15. I don't compete, and I don't have an ironman beer cozy and matching underwear to announce it to the world.
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So there you have it. List Mensa on your app at your own risk. Mensa isn't an active club, you don't go out a do anything really. Ironman competitions happen all the time and are a great extracurricular activity. I know lots of people that listed Ironman and other events on there apps and were asked but them in interviews. I don't know of anybody that talked about Mensa or honor societies. If Mensa has given you a scholarship then you need to list it, otherwise I wouldn't.

Don't fight with people when they give good advice either take it or don't.
 
WorldChanger36 said:
So there you have it. List Mensa on your app at your own risk. Mensa isn't an active club, you don't go out a do anything really. Ironman competitions happen all the time and are a great extracurricular activity. I know lots of people that listed Ironman and other events on there apps and were asked but them in interviews. I don't know of anybody that talked about Mensa or honor societies. If Mensa has given you a scholarship then you need to list it, otherwise I wouldn't.

Don't fight with people when they give good advice either take it or don't.
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Doing an Ironman competition or triathlon or other athletic accomplishment is different because it's less about validating an innate skill and more about working for and accomplishing a goal.
 
Ironmandoc said:
I think it's less an issue with my avatar (which is the dot-m ironman logo) than it is that people actually know what the Mensa symbol is

🙂
Click to expand...

I see. I stopped reading comic books when I was a teenager (around 1982), so, as far as comic books go, I am a total ignoramus.
 
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