Don’t have a high enough IQ for physics so I want to give up

[electronquark]

I am currently an undergraduate student at an average school in physics and the best student and am targeting some elite top tier PhD programs. recently did many online IQ tests and the result was 125-130 however the average IQ at top colleges is 140-150 for any major

https://iqtest.net/rankings/average-iq-by-university


For physics likely 150-160 due to it being more challenging yes literally everyone at MIT doing physics is a genius. My IQ is effectively 60-70 at these colleges among the students there if we set 100 as average so borderline mentally handicapped and I want to give up my dreams even I get admission due to lacking the neural architecture and cognitive faculties to succeed. I always wanted to be a theorist but my IQ isn’t high enough and nothing will ever make up for missing cognitive faculties. Even if I get admission I will likely be the worst in the class and there's no improvement due to not having the neural architecture. I will go from the best student at my school to the worst in a top school. I am convinced theory requires a special mind and IQ which most people don’t possess

 

[gmax137]

I think everything in your post (after the first sentence) is incorrect.

Here's what I know:

• Online IQ tests are meaningless
• Those university averages are made up numbers, because IQ tests are not part of the admissions process, and very few people have ever taken a real IQ test. The given numbers may have been inferred by SAT scores but that's questionable method at best.
• *Everyone* at MIT doing physics is *not* a genius. I have worked with quite a few MIT grads.
• "Neural architecture" -- what is that?
• If you think you're going to be at the bottom of your class, guess what ...

EDIT: my point is, please don't give up on yourself.

 

[jedishrfu]

In addition to @gmax137, what you're describing is similar to drivers on a highway stuck in traffic. They feel their lane is moving slowly, whereas neighboring lanes are moving forward faster, and so they switch, only to discover that now the new lane is not moving while others are.

In psychology, it's known as a perception illusion because you are using others as a guide to determine your position among others. What you don't see is that many of them have the same perceptual illusion and are struggling to project a superior image.

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I had a young friend who went to college to major in computer science. She was blown away by how the other students seemed to know stuff that she didn't. One knew about JavaScript and web pages, another about Java programming or assembler, you name it. She came in with a solid academic record and was learning things as fast as they were taught, but still felt she was behind. She considered switching econ.

I counseled her against switching midstream and had to explain to her that male students are constantly worrying about their image and act in extremely competitive ways to make people think they are smart. It's a lot like the machismo that surrounded hot rods, where teens would add things to their car to supercharge it and make others jealous.

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My advice to you is to ignore these external distractions and continue on your path until you realize that you aren't behind. Your grades will serve as proof of your skills, and you might even be ahead of the crowd, putting you in line for better job offers.

You can go out there and do your best.

 

[jedishrfu]

Closing this thread as we have exhausted the topic.

Thank you, @gmax137, for your insightful answer. Thanks also go to @electronquark for asking it.

This is a very real problem for college students, especially since they come from a high school environment where students are in class by tradition and mandate, but are now entering a setting where their peers are just as motivated as they are, face the same insecurities, and use the same tactics to appear superior.

Don't let your fears of failure ruin a promising career. Study hard, work with your peers, talk with your professors, and you'll get through this.

Jedi

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PS: I am currently going through this as a CS graduate student in Texas, retired but with extensive experience, yet I find it challenging to learn all the new material.

After completing the required 30 credit hours of instruction, I will prepare for the qualifying exam and undertake the self-directed tasks of writing code, testing it in various ways, and synthesizing my results into a 150-page thesis that I will then defend before a committee of experienced professors and the broader academic community.

For some students, this may be too much, but my project-oriented work, training, and experience will get me through. The instructor has reminded us that our thesis advisor is a trusted and critical resource that we shouldn't hesitate to call upon when we hit a snag. We should also network and collaborate with our fellow CS graduates to learn how they have overcome obstacles in their research.

In the final stage, I will need to write a paper, go through the peer review process, and then move on to publication to share my discovery, no matter how small it may seem to the world.

My first course, titled Introduction to CompSci PhD Research, emphasizes that journey, preparing us for what lies ahead over the next three to four years.

Our teacher has recommended the book by Justin Zobel entitled: Writing for Computer Science

https://www.amazon.com/Writing-Computer-Science-Justin-Zobel/dp/1447166388?tag=pfamazon01-20

Jedi