Mensa Germany

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Mensa Germany, or Mensa in Deutschland e.V. ("MinD"), was founded in 1979 and has around 8.000 members (= 3rd largest national Mensa group worldwide), runs various local groups and organizes a large number of gatherings. The average age is 34 years. Around 31 percent of the membership are female.

Mensa in Deutschland e.V.

Mensa in Germany, usually called "MinD", has its office in the Munich area which is run by Cirsten Novellino. MinD has a board of five voluntary directors each of whom is elected for a two year term. The current chairman is Hermann Meier. The other members are Tina Acham, Matthias Moehl, Christine Warlies and Martin Weiß.

Membership

Individual annual membership costs €44. The membership package includes a bimonthly magazine called MinD-Magazin - better known as Mind-Mag - and a regional newsletter, in German language: Ortsblatt. Chief editor of the Mind-Mag is Nicolai Meyer.

Testing

In Germany there is no tradition of IQ-scoring for school or university admission purposes. Thus taking the Mensa IQ Test is the usual way to become a member. More than 3000 test are taken each year. Around 40 percent of the candidates pass and 70 to 80 percent of those qualified subsequently decide to join Mensa. Mensa Germany uses an integrated web based IT-solution for test management, registration, billing, scoring and communication.

Regions

Mensa Germany is subdivided into several regions, each led by a LocSec (= Local Secretary). Larger regions have usually an own Ortsblatt which reports mainly about local activities but most offer also national and international news.

Ortsblätter

In Germany a total of 16 Ortsblätter (= regional newsletters) are published. Each has a unique character and is run by an Eddi (= editor) or an Eddi-team. Many Ortsblätter are magazines rather than newsletters. Eddi-Coordinator is Baki Sinanoglu.

  • Augusta for Augsburg and the surrounding area
  • BreMensie for Bremen and the surrounding area
  • Fragment for Frankfurt and the surrounding area
  • Hamlet for Hamburg and the surrounding area
  • MeDUSa for Dusseldorf and the surrounding area
  • Mensana for Munich and the surrounding area
  • MeNü for Nuremberg and the surrounding area
  • Milljöh for Berlin and the surrounding area
  • MinSH for Schleswig-Holstein
  • MiR for the Ruhrgebiet (area of Dortmund, Essen, Duisburg)
  • Muh-Q for Hanover and the surrounding area

Regular Events

There are many regional and nationwide events of Mensa Germany. In all major cities there are meet-ups every month. Furthermore there are a couple of annual gatherings.

  • Mitgliederversammlung and Jahrestagung - Mitgliederversammlung (MV) is the official annual gathering where the members discuss and decide about important issues concerning MinD. Jahrestagung (JT) is the programme for fun around. They take place in a different city every April. In 2010 MV and JT will be held in Dortmund.
  • Tag der Intelligenz - Intelligence Day, a weekend in September dedicated to the promotion of intelligence in general and the idea of Mensa. Admission tests with around 1000 participants in total, open houses and lectures in ca. 50 cities all over Germany draw much attention of local and national media and mark the beginning of a year end rally in testing and marketing activities.
  • Silvesterfeier - New Year´s Eve is celebrated in a different city every year.
  • Berliner Sommerfest - Each August more than 100 members meet in the German capital to have a good time together.
  • Fifth Friday in February - The rarest event is the FFF which takes place only each 28 years. In 2008 it will be celebrated in Weimar and the surrounding area. The venue of FFF 2036 is not yet determined.

External Link

Official website