Medically reviewed by Dakari Quimby, PhD The intelligence quotient (IQ) is a standardized measure of cognition, or your ability to think, understand, reason, learn, and remember. By design, the ...

A high IQ might give you a leg up in certain situations, like getting the job you want. However, a lower IQ score doesn’t mean you’re not intelligent or incapable of learning.

Average IQ refers to the baseline score of the general population. Therefore, to have an average IQ means that you are within normal intelligence range.