My IQ is 173, what does that mean?

Question

I'm 16 years old, if that is any help.

Answer 1

Lewis Terman (1916) developed the original notion of IQ and proposed this scale for classifying IQ scores:

Over 140 - Genius or near genius

120 - 140 - Very superior intelligence

110 - 119 - Superior intelligence

90 - 109 - Normal or average intelligence

80 - 89 - Dullness

70 - 79 - Borderline deficiency

Under 70 - Definite feeble-mindedness

Normal Distribution & IQ Scores
The properties of the normal distribution apply to IQ scores:

50% of IQ scores fall between 90 and 110

70% of IQ scores fall between 85 and 115

95% of IQ scores fall between 70 and 130

99.5% of IQ scores fall between 60 and 140

Low IQ & Mental Retardation
5% of people have an IQ under 70 and this is generally considered as the benchmark for "mental retardation", a condition of limited mental ability in that it produces difficulty in adapting to the demands of life.

Severity of mental retardation can be broken into 4 levels:

50-70 - Mild mental retardation (85%)

35-50 - Moderate mental retardation (10%)

20-35 - Severe mental retardation (4%)

IQ < 20 - Profound mental retardation (1%)

High IQ & Genius IQ
Genius IQ is generally considered to begin around 140 to 145, representing ~.25% of the population (1 in 400). Here's a rough guide:

115-124 - Above average (e.g., university students)
125-134 - Gifted (e.g., post-graduate students)
135-144 - Highly gifted (e.g., intellectuals)
145-154 - Genius (e.g., professors)
155-164 - Genius (e.g., Nobel Prize winners)
165-179 - High genius
180-200 - Highest genius
>200 - "Unmeasurable genius"

Answer 2

Where did you get your score? You need to have a WAIS done in order to get an accurate measure which compares you to other adults/students your age. I'm guessing at 16 you're in high school. Usually special education offices test students and a school psychologist administers the test. If you do have an IQ of 173, which I've never seen and I'm a guidance counselor, you would most likely be placed into a gifted program or AP classes at your school.

Answer 3

Nobody can escapce their with the things they contain in theirself.
With your range 173.
I think your will be one of the greatest genius in world.
However, the most important thing is got well- educated and training.
After all, you can draw your future with your contrubution.
All genius were working hard.
Your IQ 173 still high but it will waste if you do nothing with the gift.
Work hard and will be the one.
Good luck to you.
P/S: 173 were my range IQ last 7 years. But now, allthing is out of my hand even i 'd wish. I am 38 years old at now - 2014. U will know what to do with your range IQ. Do not waste your time.

Answer 4

I scored an IQ of 173 too when I was 7. But by the time I was 17 it was down to 163. This apparently is quite typical and may be due to heavy metal toxicity. Don't get mercury amalgam fillings. You can look up "smoking tooth" on YouTube and I'm sure you'll find out why.

Answer 5

My IQ was 173 when I was 13. It was 173 when tested again a year later. I left school with 10 O-levels, 4 A-levels and went to University for five years to emerge with a degree in Dental Surgery. I spent the next 32 years in the UK NHS as a dentist and was in the top 10 highest earning dentists in the country (out of 16,000). I took early retirement at 55 yrs and have spent the last 16 years since then in a state of blissful happiness. As Frank Sinatra once sang "I did it my way" but I never lose sight of the fact that my happy life has been the result of the sacrifices made by my parents and the passing on to me of their genetic material. I live by this simple premise - "Love people and use money". Lots of people these days seem to get this the wrong way round don t they?

Answer 6

It means you've been mis-informed, or are pulling our leg here.

Even 135 is very high: only 1% of the people in the world have an IQ that high.
Nobel prize winners are about the 155-164 range.
But 173 is getting very near to being off the charts. It would put you with some of the greatest geniuses in history.

Answer 7

I have a steady IQ of 173 But I also have many mental illnesses eg. Schizoaffective disoder and OCD too many to list. Would that contribute at the age of 23? I have been a hacker since I was 16. Now I m a network auditor security manager / Programmer. Even on tons of benzodiazepines and atypical antipsychotics It remains unchanged. So I can safely say pop a Valium if you re overwhelmed with stress. I m on 100mg of Valium, 10mg of Ativan, 4mg of Xanax and 30mg of Mogadon daily as prescribed. Smoke a lot of pot too. The point I am trying to get across is read between the lines. Love my job. Blissful life.

Answer 8

It depends.

On most IQ tests it means you are a genius. If you don't know that, however, that sheds doubt on your status as a genius. The exception to that would be if you are purposely asking this question in an attempt to make yourself look good. Being a jerk pretty much cancels out being a genius. It is not a smart move.

In addition to that, however, it depends on how you found out your score. All IQ tests are not created equal. You do not state here how you found out you IQ test, so it is ultimately impossible to say what it really means in your case. Online, especially, there are dozens and dozens of supposed IQ tests that are specifically designed to make you look smarter than you really are, such as most of the ones at the "quiz" websites. They want you to come back to their website, so they don't want you to look dumb. Some people have even questioned the accuracy of the tests done by Mensa for similar reasons, though that is more debatable.

Finally, a lot of people question IQ tests in general. They do not always tell the entire story of someone's intelligence. Many of them favor certain kinds of races and backgrounds, making it easier for a white, suburban kid to look smarter than a black, inner-city kid. Many of them emphasis different kinds of smarts than others. In addition to all of this, a person can be lucky or unlucky. The best way to know your true IQ is to take numerous tests and compare your scores. A dozen IQ scores means more than one.

In conclusion, I must say that your IQ score means nothing in the context of how you present it. More information is needed.

Answer 9

the score depends on the test and the levels of the test. I've taken IQ tests where 140 is the max., presuming that that was the standard. If your score of 139 was accomplished with a 140 max test, then you would certainly be within a genius level. If you then know that, why bother continuing taking IQ tests? You may do badly! Congratulations, anyway.

Answer 10

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