How Smart Are Montanans? A New Study Might Just Surprise You.

For many outside of the state, Montana is a rural place that has lots of mountains, prairies, cattle, and National Parks.

All over the state, you will find small towns filled with good folks who are the salt-of-the-earth type of people.  Yes, we love rodeo.  Yes, we farm and ranch. Yes, we hunt and fish. But there is a whole lot more to Montana than just that.

In fact, new data suggests that Montana ranks near the top for a few things that just might come as a surprise to not only Montanans but those living outside of the state as well.

Get our free mobile app

The website Bet Colorado compiled data from all over the country in search of the states that are the most tech-savvy and Montana scored higher than most, ranking 10th in the nation. Not only is Montana among the most advanced states when it comes to tech, but we scored above average on a lot of other categories as well.

The site took a look at the following:

• Average SAT Scores
• Average IQ
• Percentage of the population with a Bachelor's Degree or higher

So what was the final report card? Well, when it came to SAT scores, Montana had an overall average of 1206.  So where does that put Montana compared to other states? According to data, the national average for SAT scores across the country is 1050.

That's certainly impressive, but what about the average IQ? Where does Montana rank when it comes to that? Montanans on average have an IQ of 101.1 which is pretty decent especially when you figure that the national average is 97.4.

Finally, what about those with a Bachelor's Degree or higher? A third of Montanans have at least a Bachelor's Degree coming in at 33.1 percent of the population while the national average is a little higher with an overall percentage of 37.7.

However, when you throw in the fact that we're one of the least populated states in the country, Montanans have plenty to hang their hats on when it comes to the new data.