Anonymous
02/16/2025 10:32
Subject: Career ideas if low IQ but very hard working?
I don't see how someone with a truly low IQ could be a mechanic? How do you diagnose and fix a car or other machine with a low IQ? They might as well be geniuses, as far as I'm concerned, and I'm in a profession that requires a degree of intelligence. You're often running your own business as a mechanic as well, which many people can't / won't do. Same thing with the trades.
Anonymous
02/16/2025 10:00
Subject: Career ideas if low IQ but very hard working?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Armed forces
Emt paramedic firefighter
Plumber carpenter electrician
Nurse
Ridiculous list. A low IW person is not going to be able to do any of these except a grunt in the military.
Again, reiterating the above...truly low IQ individuals aren't making it into the military. The military has test score minimums to even enlist--you need to be in the top two thirds of the test pool, which is already self-selecting and many schools test every student, even the college bound.
The modern military requires more and more IQ relative to just physical strength, and I don't see this changing unless we get involved in some massive war.
This isn't the era of Forrest Gump anymore.
Anonymous
02/16/2025 09:54
Subject: Career ideas if low IQ but very hard working?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Mechanic? There’s a woman in the SN forum that posts about her son with a low iq that is a mechanic.
That’s me. He has an IQ of about
72. He is quite successful. He has a CDL but the tests are tough. He works the the county so he makes >$70 per year and has good benefits.
I’d also suggest considering something like a custodian for someplace like metro. Lots of companies and government agencies contract out for that kind of work. But for those that don’t you can earn a living wage with health insurance.
What I will say is this. My son is successful because I worked with him to study for the CDL tests and applying for jobs and lots of other things. He went to vo tech in HS which gave him enough foundation to be successful in an auto training program. So if we’re talking about someone who truly low IQ, success doesn’t takes a lot of support.
Does your son have any emotional or physical disabilities? I’m guessing no to the latter.
No to either.
I actually think that is a huge factor in the success of individuals with lower IQs--whether or not they also have emotional and physical disabilities (which often accompany low IQ). There are jobs they can do, but emotional difficulties (Eg, outbursts, inability to observe personal physical boundaries, etc.) create a ton of risk for the employer and physical disabilities limit the types of work they can do (for example, the work your son does on cars definitely requires fine and gross motor skills).
Anonymous
02/16/2025 09:49
Subject: Career ideas if low IQ but very hard working?
Anonymous wrote:Armed forces
Emt paramedic firefighter
Plumber carpenter electrician
Nurse
Ridiculous list. A low IW person is not going to be able to do any of these except a grunt in the military.
Anonymous
02/16/2025 09:47
Subject: Career ideas if low IQ but very hard working?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Having a “Low IQ” doesn’t mean someone doesn’t have strengths or talents in other areas. We have a lower IQ family member (tested between 87-94 years ago) who loves working with kids and animals, is incredibly patient, intuitive/empathetic, inquisitive, bright, and hard working. Years of special Ed programs, hands on experiential learning, tutoring, supports, and positive encouragement have paid off. She wants to work with kids who are her as a speech therapist, OT, or therapist or work in animal care like a vet tech.
Ffs, people. An IQ of “87-94” is in normal range. Fifteen points would be one standard deviation from the norm (of 100 — the top of the bell).
Exactly. The middle of OP's range corresponds to roughly the 33rd percentile in IQ. Totally in the range of normal, and generally someone who can function well mentally in normal jobs and classroom settings (absent any major emotional or physical disabilities).
Anonymous
02/16/2025 09:33
Subject: Career ideas if low IQ but very hard working?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:But you can get Cs and still get a job. It’s not like becoming a doctor where every grade matters.
Uhhhhh you know what they call the person with the lowest GPA at med school graduation, right?
Someone who won't match?
The people who don't match are the ones who only pick specialties and locations with a scarce number of matches. If you want to be an orthopedic surgeon or dermatologist in CA or NY, yeah, you're going to have trouble matching. That's like saying you are only applying to Ivy League colleges.
But someone who graduates from an accredited US medical school should match if they are open to many locations, and if they consider specialties like primary care/family medicine where there are more spots.
Medical schools in the United States are very good about not allowing their students who score low on their step exams to only apply in derm in New York City or something. I will assure you that there are students who are aware of all this, and apply to internal medicine in places that people don’t want to be, who still don’t match.
Anonymous
02/16/2025 09:30
Subject: Career ideas if low IQ but very hard working?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:But you can get Cs and still get a job. It’s not like becoming a doctor where every grade matters.
Uhhhhh you know what they call the person with the lowest GPA at med school graduation, right?
Someone who won't match?
And yet they’re still a doctor without GME.
Sure. If you’re talking about the title, and not the ability to actually practice medicine legally.
There are only a few states in which you can practice medicine without having done a residency. And even in those states, your practice is going to be very limited in scope. I think most people in that position, with a limited license, are in urgent cares doing really simple stuff that a nurse could do and they have to be supervised as a NP or PA would be. They aren’t real doctors able to fully practice.
Anonymous
02/16/2025 09:27
Subject: Career ideas if low IQ but very hard working?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I’ll get flamed for this, but the less intelligent people I know are or were in education. Teachers and principals.
Especially men. My FIL fits this description.
Yep. PP here, and 3/4 people, including the one who became a principal, are men.
+1, but to the general point.
Education is also a good industry if OP’s child is particularly emotionally high maintenance.
I’m trying to imagine a Physics, Trig, Government, or World Literature with a low IQ. I don’t see it.
It’s not just having content knowledge, it’s about knowing how to engage an unwilling audience and delivering it.
Same goes for a 1st grade or 3rd grade teacher. Sure, the concepts may not be particularly complex, but knowing how to deliver them? That’s ridiculously hard and takes skill: organization, communication, the ability to differentiate and immediately pivot without a plan, etc. Not to mention the understanding of theory and child psychology they need for the job.
I have nothing but respect for teachers. I know what they do is extremely demanding, including intellectually. But if people just think they “play with kids,” you wouldn’t think that.
Elementary ed, not hs physics. Plenty of relatively dumb people there, despite PC requiring everyone to go on publicly about "respect for teachers" and "what they do is extremely demanding."
Where’s my requirement that you respect teachers? This is DCUM. I’m fully aware most people here don’t respect them. (Most people here also have no clue what teachers do.)
I am a teacher (high school) and I know many elementary school teachers. So I’m coming from a place of understanding; I know the day-to-day requirements of the job and I’m fully aware of the skills and talents necessary to pull it off.
But most people on DCUM aren’t in my shoes, so I am not surprised when people go on and on about how teachers are “relatively dumb.” This is DCUM, where people anonymously put others down all the time. It’s what I expect. Hence, no… I don’t demand respect from you or anyone else here.
But you don’t know what you don’t know. Which means you don’t really know how easy your job is. Because you aren’t that smart, and you don’t have the context. It’s not like being a doctor or a lawyer to be a teacher.
Anonymous
02/16/2025 09:25
Subject: Career ideas if low IQ but very hard working?
Anonymous wrote:Having a “Low IQ” doesn’t mean someone doesn’t have strengths or talents in other areas. We have a lower IQ family member (tested between 87-94 years ago) who loves working with kids and animals, is incredibly patient, intuitive/empathetic, inquisitive, bright, and hard working. Years of special Ed programs, hands on experiential learning, tutoring, supports, and positive encouragement have paid off. She wants to work with kids who are her as a speech therapist, OT, or therapist or work in animal care like a vet tech.
Ffs, people. An IQ of “87-94” is in normal range. Fifteen points would be one standard deviation from the norm (of 100 — the top of the bell).
Anonymous
02/16/2025 07:53
Subject: Career ideas if low IQ but very hard working?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Mechanic? There’s a woman in the SN forum that posts about her son with a low iq that is a mechanic.
That’s me. He has an IQ of about
72. He is quite successful. He has a CDL but the tests are tough. He works the the county so he makes >$70 per year and has good benefits.
I’d also suggest considering something like a custodian for someplace like metro. Lots of companies and government agencies contract out for that kind of work. But for those that don’t you can earn a living wage with health insurance.
What I will say is this. My son is successful because I worked with him to study for the CDL tests and applying for jobs and lots of other things. He went to vo tech in HS which gave him enough foundation to be successful in an auto training program. So if we’re talking about someone who truly low IQ, success doesn’t takes a lot of support.
Does your son have any emotional or physical disabilities? I’m guessing no to the latter.
No to either.
Anonymous
02/16/2025 02:23
Subject: Career ideas if low IQ but very hard working?
Having a “Low IQ” doesn’t mean someone doesn’t have strengths or talents in other areas. We have a lower IQ family member (tested between 87-94 years ago) who loves working with kids and animals, is incredibly patient, intuitive/empathetic, inquisitive, bright, and hard working. Years of special Ed programs, hands on experiential learning, tutoring, supports, and positive encouragement have paid off. She wants to work with kids who are her as a speech therapist, OT, or therapist or work in animal care like a vet tech.
Anonymous
02/15/2025 22:01
Subject: Career ideas if low IQ but very hard working?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Armed forces
Emt paramedic firefighter
Plumber carpenter electrician
Nurse
Nurse?
My DD is in college for nursing. She is currently taking Calculus, Anatomy, Chemistry, and Pharmacology…. all in one semester.
It’s a challenging courseload.
There are different categories of nurses. A licensed practical nurse is different from a registered nurse.
But the problem is that there’s a lot of career snobbery floating around, and we don’t all realize how smart and skilled a lot of the people in the trades are.
I'm a nurse and it's funny to hear people who literally know zero about being a nurse throwing things around. Nursing is a tough degree and requires a lot of science prereq just to get to the actual nursing part which entails more science and very long days at clinicals. And you have to keep your grades up, too many C's and you're kicked out. Not to mention there's a shortage of nursing school slots so you may have close to a 4.0 but not get into nursing school because the average school will have hundreds of applicants for 80-90 seats.
Anonymous
02/15/2025 21:40
Subject: Career ideas if low IQ but very hard working?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Mechanic? There’s a woman in the SN forum that posts about her son with a low iq that is a mechanic.
That’s me. He has an IQ of about
72. He is quite successful. He has a CDL but the tests are tough. He works the the county so he makes >$70 per year and has good benefits.
I’d also suggest considering something like a custodian for someplace like metro. Lots of companies and government agencies contract out for that kind of work. But for those that don’t you can earn a living wage with health insurance.
What I will say is this. My son is successful because I worked with him to study for the CDL tests and applying for jobs and lots of other things. He went to vo tech in HS which gave him enough foundation to be successful in an auto training program. So if we’re talking about someone who truly low IQ, success doesn’t takes a lot of support.
Does your son have any emotional or physical disabilities? I’m guessing no to the latter.
Anonymous
02/15/2025 11:25
Subject: Career ideas if low IQ but very hard working?
Anonymous wrote:Mechanic? There’s a woman in the SN forum that posts about her son with a low iq that is a mechanic.
That’s me. He has an IQ of about
72. He is quite successful. He has a CDL but the tests are tough. He works the the county so he makes >$70 per year and has good benefits.
I’d also suggest considering something like a custodian for someplace like metro. Lots of companies and government agencies contract out for that kind of work. But for those that don’t you can earn a living wage with health insurance.
What I will say is this. My son is successful because I worked with him to study for the CDL tests and applying for jobs and lots of other things. He went to vo tech in HS which gave him enough foundation to be successful in an auto training program. So if we’re talking about someone who truly low IQ, success doesn’t takes a lot of support.
Anonymous
02/15/2025 10:28
Subject: Career ideas if low IQ but very hard working?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I don't think OP is coming back to tell us what OP means, everyone.
Which means we've been trolled.
Well then maybe this thread is good for stereotype busting. Because people have given good reasons why some of the jobs are more demanding than others believe.