Joining Mensa has never been easier!

You may be thinking, “How do I join?” Maybe, “I’m not sure that I’ll qualify.” or “I never made good grades in school.”

The truth of the matter is that, in the U.S. alone, more than six million people qualify for membership — that’s really one person in every 50. Most don’t realize that they qualify and haven’t considered membership. You’ve at least considered membership, or you wouldn’t be reading this now.

So how do you join? It’s easy. You can become a member of American Mensa in one of two ways:

• If you’re age 14 or older, you can take a supervised, standardized test in your area with one of our certified proctor volunteers. TEST DATES ARE LISTED BELOW.
• Anyone can submit evidence of prior testing in the form of scores from a supervised, standardized test like the Stanford Binet, the Miller Analogies Test or the GMAT. American Mensa lists tests and qualifying tests on their site: (http://www.us.mensa.org/join/testscores/qualifyingscores/)

In either case, if you’ve scored in the top percent, you’ll qualify for membership in American Mensa. Then it’s just a matter of paying your annual dues!

So what happens if we aren’t testing in your area soon?

First off, double check with the testing contact in your area. If you are in the Boston Mensa region, your contact is our Local Secretary, Sean Guerrino (locsec@bostonmensa.org), as our Proctor Coordinator position is currently vacant. While we may not have a test scheduled, we may add a testing session to the calendar if enough people request one.

You might also contact your secondary school, college or university and see about getting a copy of your transcript, which should indicate if you’ve taken any placement tests. It’s certainly possible that you were given a placement test at an early age, and that test might be one of those we review for membership qualification.

Another option would be to provide documentation from a state-licensed psychologist; many provide testing services for a fee.

What about kids? Can they join?
We have members who range in age from 3 to 105. Certainly, kids can qualify and join. Gifted youth between 14 and 18 can take one of our supervised, standardized tests, and those under 14 can submit evidence of prior testing. Learn more about what Mensa offers kids.

You’ve been notified that you’ve qualified; now what?
Congratulations! Your life as a Mensa member can start right now, and it takes just a few minutes to join online! Have a credit card handy as well as your acceptance letter, bill or email so that you can reference your member number. Within 10 business days you’ll get your membership card and new member packet in the mail. Alternatively, you can talk to a Member Services Representative at 817/607-0060 ext. 199 during regular business hours, central time, Monday through Friday.

You think you were a member before. Do you have to test again?
If you are a former member of American Mensa and are currently living in the United States or its protectorates, you do not have to requalify. You can simply reinstate your membership.

What’s in it for you?
Good question.

There’s the camaraderie of being among a group of diverse people who share your love of knowledge. Some like the social aspect of the organization, which includes everything from local game nights to the Annual Gathering. Others enjoy intellectual events such as speaker meetings, Colloquiums or CultureQuest®.

American Mensa has more than 150 Special Interest Groups that allow members to pursue their interests — from astronomy to quilting — with other Mensans. The Local Groups host speaker nights, have lunch outings and play games at local and regional game nights.

Many Mensa members serve their communities through our service programs, and member volunteers also work with the Mensa Foundation to award scholarships to more than 150 college students each year.

If that’s not enough, how about saving time and money? American Mensa members save on travel services, insurance, financial guidance, publications and more through benefit and service programs — with new benefits being added regularly.

Then, there’s the online component to your membership. In addition to our online Community, there are hundreds of Mensa communities online run by member volunteers around the world, including those on Facebook, LinkedIn®, MySpace®, CompuServe®, and Meetup.

So, now that you know how easy it is, are you in?