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General Questions   |   Membership Questions   |   Acronyms

General Questions




What is Mensa like?

Broward Mensa is one of 135 Mensa groups in the United States that are a part of American Mensa. Our members get together locally for events such as outdoor activities, game nights, movie nights, Sunday brunch, happy hours and house parties. Regionally, members may attend one or many more RGs. Nationally, members attend events such as the Annual Gathering, Mind Games®, CultureQuest®, and Colloquium.

American Mensa has more than 150 Special Interests Groups (SIGs), ranging from amateur radio aficionados to World of Warcraft game players. Some of the members of these SIGs even organize regional and national get-togethers to enjoy each other's company more often.

Introverts and extroverts alike enjoy attending many local activities. In them, you can be as active or passive as you want to be. Whether you like to engage in discussions, or are content to just listen, you can be sure to find an event that appeals to you. And if you don't see an event that interests you, you are welcome to set one up! All of our events are hosted by members. Who knows? Maybe your event is just what a bunch of other Ms were hoping to find listed in the Calendar.

Mensa is a society where no two people think alike. Your ideas will be respected; just don't expect everyone to agree with you! Mensa members are definitely individuals, so you can be sure of finding a lively good-humored discussion whenever Ms gather.

Doesn't all this sound like something you'd like to be a part of? Be sure to check the American Mensa website to get a larger picture of what Mensa is all about.


What are Mensans like?

Mensans come in all ages, shapes and sizes, and represent every education level, from high school dropouts to Ph.Ds. They represent both sexes, all races, various professions, and many beliefs. However, they all share one trait: high intelligence.

Every Mensa member participates in the organization on a different level. The most active kind of member will attend the AG and several RGs every year, actively participate in his local group and SIG events, and has probably been to Mind Games, the Colloquium and the Mensa cruise at least once. (Yes, you read correctly, there is a Mensa cruise). The least active kind probably enjoys the intellectual stimulation that the local newsletters and the national Mensa Bulletin provide, or participates in the online SIG forums and mailing lists, without venturing out to meet members of the local group. And then, of course, are the members that fall in the whole range in between.

Which kind will you be?


Does Mensa have programs for gifted children?

Absolutely! American Mensa has more than 1,300 members under the age of 18 with the youngest being 3 years old. Visit the American Mensa Gifted Youth's section for more information.


How many people belong to Mensa?

American Mensa now has over 50,000 members; another 50,000 members belong to other national Mensa groups in more than 98 countries throughout the world. Broward Mensa has about 440 members living in Broward County, FL.

Membership Questions




What qualifies me to be a Mensa member?

Membership in Mensa is open to persons who have attained a score at or above the 98th percentile on an approved IQ test that has been properly administered and supervised. That means that one out of every fifty people qualifies for Mensa. Five million Americans qualify for membership


When can I take a qualifying test?

Check the Testing Calendar for upcoming testing dates. Contact our Testing Coordinator if you need special assistance such as taking a culture fair test.


Can I take a practice test?

Yes, at-home practice tests are available. Click here to be taken to the online order form. You can also try Mensa International's Mensa Workout quiz for fun.


I have prior evidence, but it's been a long time since I took those tests. Are my scores still acceptable?

Scores are valid forever, as long as they meet the Mensa requirements.


I was a member in the past. How do I rejoin?

If you have been a member of American Mensa in the past and would like to rejoin, please contact our national office at (817) 607-0060 or at NationalOffice@americanmensa.org.

If you know your membership number, you can also pay your dues online with a credit card or via direct debit to your bank account. You do not have to take another test, you need simply pay your dues for the current membership year.


How much are the membership dues?

Current Annual Dues are $63 with discounts for additional family members and longer term memberships.


Are there special benefits to being a Mensa member?

Mensa has a lot to offer, both socially and intellectually. No matter what your interests, and whether you're an introvert or an extrovert, you will find endless opportunities for friendship and belonging through the vast network of social activities at the national, regional and local levels.

However, as any other organization, being a member has a few perks such as services and special pricing with certain select companies. For a list of these companies, click on the following link on the American Mensa website.


Where can I get more information?

Contact our local Recruitment and Retention Officer

Acronyms and Abbreviations


Mensans love using acronyms and abbreviations. But us newbies don't always know what they stand for. Here's a list of useful acronyms and abbreviations, as well as a few obscure terms, to help you make sense of the Mensan lexicon.

AG Annual Gathering. Mensa's annual convocation, which meets in a different host city every year. American Mensa's AG is in late June or early July, usually around the July 4th holiday. Other Mensa national groups also have AGs. The 2011 AG was held in Portland, Oregon, and the 2012 AG will be held in Reno, Nevada.
AMC American Mensa Committee; the board of directors of American Mensa. It is comprised of 21 voting members. The voting AMC is composed of five nationally elected officers (Chairman, First and Second Vice Chairmen, Secretary and Treasurer), 10 Regional Vice Chairmen, two Past Chairmen and four key appointees — the Communications Officer, the Development Officer, the Director of Science and Education, and the Membership Officer.
AML American Mensa, Limited; the official name of our organization.
ExComm Executive Committee. In Broward Mensa, this consists of LocSec, Editor, Treasurer, Program Chair, Membership Officer, Ombudsman, and three at-large positions. They're the board of directors of our local group.
IBD International Board of Directors. The leadership of the entire Mensa organization (Mensa International).
Joe Vitale Memorial Scholarship A scholarship in the amount of $1000.00 given to a deserving Broward County student.
LocSec Local Secretary. The president of a local group of Mensa. Although many local groups call their chief executives something else, to National they're all LocSecs.
M Mensan. Its plural is Ms (pronounced "ems", not "miss").
MGE Meet, Greet, and Eat. A local SIG, formerly known as Pubnight, which gets together the first and third Thursdays of every month. A laid back gathering of Ms over dinner, it's open to prospective members as well. No alcohol consumption required.
MM Miami Mensa. The local group of Miami-Dade county.
Myers-Briggs Myers-Briggs Type Indicator Assessment (MBTI). It is a psychometric questionnaire designed to measure psychological preferences in how people perceive the world and make decisions. A popular indicator amongst Ms.

The Myers-Briggs typology model regards personality type as similar to left or right handedness: individuals are either born with, or develop, certain preferred ways of thinking and acting. The MBTI sorts some of these psychological differences into four opposite pairs, or dichotomies, with a resulting 16 possible psychological types.

The 16 different types are often referred to by an abbreviation of four letters, the initial letters of each of their four type preferences (except in the case of iNtuition, which uses N to distinguish it from Introversion); for instance:

  • ESTJ - Extraversion, Sensing, Thinking, Judging
  • INFP - Introversion, iNtuition, Feeling, Perceiving
... and so on for all 16 possible type combinations.
National Nationwide level of American Mensa. Often used to refer to the AMC, AML, or the central office in Texas.
Region 10 One of ten regions in which American Mensa is divided; the one Broward Mensa is a part of. Region 10 covers all of Florida and a small area of Georgia.
RG Regional Gathering. Sponsored by a local group, an RG draws its attendance from its own and neighboring groups. A great opportunity to meet most of your local Ms, it features games, speaker lectures (on a variety of topics, from hostage negotiations to scale model railroading), great food, and general fooling around. They are held in hotels and motels, and feature certain staples such as 24-hour Games and Hospitality suites, and fiercely competitive game tournaments.

Broward Mensa's RG is called FLoRanGe.

FLoRanGe was traditionally held every other year on Labor Day weekend.
RVC Regional Vice-Chair. Elected by and for a geographic region of Mensa, this officer represents that region on the AMC and works to foster growth and development within the region.
SIG Special Interest Group. A means of bringing together Ms who have a common interest in a specific subject. It can be a national SIG, communicating by web forums, newsletters or e-mail lists only, or a local SIG that becomes a regular part of a Mensan's social life. Their interests are as varied as the Mensans who are part of them. Topics of interest range from Amateur Radio to Warcraft. Local SIGs include the Brunch Bunch, BULL SIG, Meet Greet and Eat, Mensa Night @ the Movies, Outdoor SIG, and SIGMA4.
SIGHT Service for International Guidance and Hospitality to Travelers. A network of volunteer hosts offering accommodations to Ms who want to visit their cities. Local coordinators help get hosts and guests together, as well as introduce guests to the variety of attractions the local area offers.
SIGMA4 Special Interest Group for Mensans - Anything Anytime Anywhere Anyone. A recently formed local SIG which holds events at the spur of the moment, and therefore, its activities are rarely posted on the calendar. Contact the SIG Coordinator if you are interested in being informed of their activities.

Note: Many of the questions, answers and acronyms above were compiled from other Mensa local group websites.

These pages and all content © 2009-2024 by American Mensa, Ltd., all rights reserved. Mensa® and the Mensa logo (as depicted for example in U.S. TM Reg. No. 1,405,381) are registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office by American Mensa, Ltd., and are registered in other countries by Mensa International Limited and/or affiliated national Mensa organizations. Mensa does not hold any opinion or have, or express, any political or religious views. Individual members however are not restricted from holding any or all of the above, and may be inclined to share them at a moment's notice.