site banner

Small-Scale Question Sunday for August 20, 2023

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.

3
Jump in the discussion.

No email address required.

I oft-handedly mentioned that master's degree holders have a higher average IQ than bachelor's degree holders. My friend said "No, that's not true," and so I went to Google to prove my point. I have found random people pulling out numbers without citation, and I have found published papers and magazine articles showing average IQ by major, but not by degree level.

Anyone who can find a reliable source showing the difference in average IQ by level of post-HS educational attainment gets a hug.

There are a bunch of plots out there, mostly using the NLSY97. See for example the figures under "IQ/test score by educational attainment level" here.

Edit: Also pretty interesting, the paper Scott linked to a while ago separating cognitive and non-cognitive factors in educational attainment. The paper abstract seems to imply the link between cognitive factors and educational attainment is well established.