Average IQ by occupation (estimated from median income)

++Addition++After reading multiple comments critiquing the post for the same thing, it's clear that I did a poor job of explaining what the table purports to show. It's not supposed to be an exact measure of IQ by profession by any means, as it is based entirely on average annual income figures. In other words, it's an income table with the values converted to IQ scores (and thus, as silly girl points out, it's a bit of a mislabeling on my part, although that is the point--to get an instinctive feel for how related IQ and income are at the career level).

As Saint Louis notes, physicists and astronomers are surely understated, while physicians and surgeons are overstated. Some of that, again, is a result of the prerequisite training required to enter those medical fields, and some is a result of the full workload and working conditions doctors and surgeons face relative to that of astronomers or chemical engineers.

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Career Cast recently published a list ranking 200 major occupations from best to worst, as measured by five criteria. One of those is income, displayed as the median earnings in a field plus a small premium based on income growth potential.

While income is positively correlated with IQ, it's obviously not perfectly so. Nonetheless, the following table estimates average IQ scores by occupation solely on the basis of the Career Cast mid-level income figures. The median salary (of a paralegal assistant) is taken to correspond to an IQ of 100. One standard deviation is assumed to be 15 IQ points:

Occupation	IQ
1. Surgeon	234.1
2. Physician	161.1
3. Corporate executive	148.0
4. Psychiatrist	147.7
5. Dentist	140.0
6. Orthodontist	131.2
7. Podiatrist	129.1
8. Judge	127.9
9. Attorney	127.8
10. Petroleum engineer	126.1
11. Pharmacist	126.1
12. Physicist	124.9
13. Commercial airline pilot	124.9
14. Astronomer	124.5
15. Financial planner	122.8
16. Nuclear engineer	121.1
17. Optometrist	120.7
18. Aerospace engineer	120.2
19. Mathematician	119.8
20. Public relations executive	118.1
21. Economist	116.9
22. Actuary	116.9
23. Software engineer	116.9
24. Meteorologist	116.0
25. School principal	116.0
26. Physician assistant	115.6
27. Electrical engineer	115.2
28. Web developer	115.2
29. Construction foreman	114.8
30. Geologist	114.4
31. Veterinarian	114.4
32. Computer systems analyst	112.7
33. Mechanical engineer	112.6
34. Civil engineer	112.2
35. Industrial engineer	111.8
36. Biologist	111.4
37. Physical therapist	111.4
38. Statistician	111.0
39. Architect	111.0
40. Computer programmer	110.1
41. Occupational therapist	109.7
42. Sociologist	109.7
43. Chiropractor	108.9
44. Chemist	108.9
45. Stockbroker	108.6
46. Dental hygienist	108.4
47. Psychologist	108.0
48. Speech pathologist	107.6
49. Registered nurse	107.2
50. Historian	106.8
51. Technical writer	106.8
52. Occupational safety/health inspector	106.7
53. Audiologist	106.7
54. Market research analyst	106.4
55. Advertising account executive	106.3
56. Fashion designer	106.0
57. Philosopher	105.9
58. Accountant	105.5
59. Farmer	105.1
60. Industrial designer	104.7
61. Insurance underwriter	104.7
62. Telephone installer and repairer	104.6
63. Zoologist	104.2
64. Communications equipment mechanic	103.8
65. Loan officer	103.4
66. Purchasing agent	103.4
67. Engineering technician	103.4
68. Medical technologist	103.4
69. Author	103.0
70. Undertaker	103.0
71. Librarian	103.0
72. Surveyor	103.0
73. Railroad conductor	103.0
74. Conservationist	102.9
75. Anthropologist	102.5
76. Vocational counselor	102.5
77. Highway patrol officer	102.5
78. Aircraft mechanic	102.5
79. Respiratory therapist	102.5
80. Dietitian	102.1
81. Mail carrier	102.1
82. Motion picture editor	101.8
83. Sales representative	101.8
84. Publication editor	101.7
85. Archeologist	101.7
86. Physiologist	101.7
87. Stationary engineer	101.7
88. Teacher	101.7
89. Electrical equipment repairer	101.7
90. Newscaster	101.4
91. Tax examiner	100.9
92. Buyer	100.9
93. Police officer	100.9
94. Actor	100.8
95. Stenographer	100.5
96. Museum curator	100.5
97. Electrician	100.0
98. Bricklayer	100.0
99. Parole officer	100.0
100. Paralegal assistant	100.0
101. Tool-and-die maker	100.0
102. Insurance agent	99.7
103. Personnel recruiter	99.6
104. Hotel manager	99.6
105. Plumber	99.6
106. Architectural drafter	99.6
107. Firefighter	99.2
108. Set designer	99.2
109. Artist (fine art)	98.8
110. Industrial machine repairer	98.7
111. Advertising salesperson	98.4
112. Clergy	98.4
113. Sheet metal worker	97.5
114. Heating and refrigeration mechanic	97.5
115. Real estate agent	97.1
116. Photojournalist	97.1
117. Flight attendant	97.1
118. Construction machinery operator	97.1
119. Social worker	97.1
120. Sewage plant operator	97.1
121. Licensed practical nurse	97.0
122. Stevedore	96.6
123. Carpenter	96.6
124. Corrections officer	96.6
125. Choreographer	96.3
126. Automobile body repairer	96.2
127. Plasterer	96.2
128. Office machine repairer	96.2
129. Machinist	96.2
130. Truck driver	96.2
131. Carpet and tile installer	95.8
132. Drywall applicator and finisher	95.8
133. Computer service technician	95.8
134. Nuclear decontamination technician	95.8
135. Glazier	95.4
136. Sailor	95.4
137. Medical laboratory technician	95.4
138. Automobile mechanic	95.0
139. Dental laboratory technician	95.0
140. Welder	94.9
141. Newspaper reporter	94.6
142. Jeweler	94.5
143. Meter reader	94.5
144. Roofer	94.5
145. Bus driver	94.5
146. Appliance repairer	94.5
147. Painter	94.5
148. Agricultural scientist	94.5
149. Ironworker	94.5
150. Machine tool operator	94.5
151. Broadcast technician	94.2
152. Piano tuner	94.1
153. Musical instrument repairer	94.1
154. Compositor/typesetter	94.1
155. Optician	94.1
156. Bookkeeper	94.1
157. Typist	94.1
158. Electrical technician	94.0
159. Garbage collector	93.7
160. Roustabout	93.7
161. Dairy farmer	93.7
162. Lumberjack	93.7
163. Bookbinder	93.3
164. Telephone operator	93.3
165. Medical records technician	93.3
166. Travel agent	93.3
167. Drill-press operator	93.3
168. Photographer	92.9
169. Emergency medical technician	92.8
170. Vending machine repairer	92.8
171. Furniture upholsterer	92.8
172. Forklift operator	92.8
173. Medical secretary	92.8
174. Construction worker	92.4
175. Butcher	92.4
176. Disc jockey	92.1
177. Precision assembler	92.0
178. Shipping and receiving clerk	92.0
179. Automobile assembler	91.6
180. Dressmaker	91.6
181. Photographic process worker	91.2
182. Receptionist	90.7
183. Barber	90.3
184. Guard	90.3
185. Nurse's aid	90.3
186. Bank teller	90.3
187. Cosmetologist	89.9
188. Teacher's aide	89.9
189. Shoe maker and repairer	89.9
190. Recreation worker	89.5
191. Janitor	89.5
192. Chauffeur	89.5
193. Taxi driver	89.0
194. Retail salesman	88.6
195. Child care worker	88.2
196. Maid	88.2
197. Bartender	87.8
198. Waiter	87.8
199. Cashier	87.7
200. Dishwasher	87.7

With the exception of an astronomical score for surgeons and one in the stratosphere for physicians, it's pretty predictable. And when I say that, I mean the scores are about what you'd predict to see if someone showed you a list of IQ by occupation without informing you of how the scores were determined. Pay is generally commensurate with an occupation's cognitive demands, which is why the list has a great deal of face validity.

The apparent misrepresentations are the ones that irritate me the most, perhaps exposing me for an IQ meritocrat (or maybe its a visceral disdain for high IQ vampires who use their intelligence to parasitically suck the blood of their productive neighbors). I'm skeptical that nuclear engineers are, on average, 'less intelligent' than attorneys or that software engineers tend to have lower IQs than physicians.

Some of this is a result of credentialism, with medical school requirements being more difficult to fulfill than various certification requirements for software developers, even though being a successful software developer requires a higher IQ than being a doctor does. Some of it the result of the personal interaction premium, where, relative to the objective value people create, those who do so largely through direct communication with other people enjoy greater remuneration for their efforts (this trend is generally beneficial for women at the expense of men).

Of course, some of this 'dissonance' is due to crucial factors other than intelligence. Corporate executives need high executive function and strong leadership capabilities, while aerospace engineers, despite presumably having higher average IQs, do not have nearly as demanding non-IQ requirements for success.