The Smartest People Were Born in This Month, Study Suggests (2024)

You may think you're smart — but are you smarter than someone born in September?

Those born in September are, apparently, the smartest out of the entire year.

According to Marie Claire, a study published in the National Bureau of Economic Research found that there's a clear correlation between the month during which you were born and how smart you are.

The study, entitled "School Starting Age and Cognitive Development," found that schoolchildren born in September were more likely to have higher GPAs than those born in any other month.

But don't worry, everybody else born in the 11 other months: It's not like a September baby's (perceived) intelligence was the cause of annual divine intervention in the ninth month of the year. The school system is set up to favor children born around this time.

Researchers found that "being relatively old for grade (being born in September versus August)" was more likely to result in better grades. This seems to be supported by the fact that those born in August — and are 11 months younger — were most likely to have the lowest grades.

However, this study took place in Florida where the cut-off for school enrollment is Sep. 1. In other states, like New York, that cut-off can be as late as Dec. 31, which would likely skew results.

But also, apparently, the study found out that those born in September were the least likely to go to prison, according to Marie Claire. So there may be something to the ninth month magic, after all.