Washington, D.C., is the smartest city in America, according to a report published by the U.S. Census Bureau. The report says that 23.6 percent of 25-and-over residents of the District have an advanced degree, more than any other city or state in the nation.
The Census defined an advanced degree as a graduate or professional degree, such as master's, medical, law or doctoral.
Among states, the smartest is Massachusetts, where 14.5 percent of adults have an advanced degree. Maryland took second place with 14.1 percent, followed by Connecticut, Virginia and New York.
Rounding out the top 10 were Vermont, Colorado, New Jersey, New Mexico and Illinois.
Nationwide, 9.4 percent of adults have an advanced degree.
"It's not particularly surprising to me," said sophomore Michael Parish about the report. "[D.C.] is the center of a gigantic bureaucracy."
Sophomore Ben Connors said that the District's placement makes sense because "we are in the crux of an important political time, and I think that most people who are interested and educated would like to be involved in shaping that."
The report noted that college graduates earn an average of $2.1 million in their lifetimes, while those with advanced degrees earn $2.5 million in their lives.
Cities tend to rank higher than full states, because cities are centers of educational and business activity, while rural areas have less need for highly educated people. This is why Chicago's percentage is higher than the entire state of Illinois, and New York City's is higher than the state of New York.
However, even if D.C. was part of a surrounding state, its ranking would still be high. District neighbors Maryland and Virginia were both among the top four states.
Connors said he did not put much weight in this survey. "Some of the smartest people I know don't have degrees, and some of the dumbest do," he said.
Sophomore Dylan French agreed, saying, "I don't think percentage with advanced degrees is necessarily an indication of intelligence."
The bottom fifth of the list was populated with southern states such as Tennessee, Louisiana, Arkansas and, at the very bottom, Mississippi. Connors said of the states at the bottom, "I think that has little to do with intelligence, and a lot to do with the culture and industry of various locals, and what kind of education those industries and cultures require."
French, who is from Kentucky, said, "I left the South because it's not exactly an intelligence-nurturing atmosphere. The 'it's good enough for my dad, it's good enough for me' mentality runs pretty strong. They stick with what they know rather than trying to learn new stuff"
