William: The royal brain

London, Nov. 6: Prince William is the brains of the family ? it’s official. The 23-year-old prince, who is to enrol at the Sandhurst Royal Military Academy in January, scored seven out of 10 in the “raw intelligence” test, when he took part in a gruelling assessment at the Regular Commissions Board in Westbury, Wiltshire.

Prince Harry is understood to have scored four in the same test in September last year.

Senior officers who witnessed Prince William tackle the various physical and mental trials ? designed to assess a candidate’s potential to become an army officer ? described him as “athletic, well co-ordinated and quite bright”.

It is believed that what surprised many of the officers who were judging his suitability to become a commissioned officer was his performance in multiple-choice intelligence tests, which he faced on the first day. These computer tests are used to assess an individual’s powers of reasoning, general knowledge and intelligence. Candidates also have to take part in a planning exercise, group discussions and give a short lecture to other members on the course.

A senior officer said: “The raw intelligence test is exactly that. It is used to assess the potential of all soldiers from those who join the ranks to those who want to become officers.”

“It gives the best indication of a candidate’s IQ. A score of 10 out of 10 means you are a genius, while one or zero means you are barely functioning. Seven, which William got, is very, very good. He also displayed good leadership skills. On the showing he gave at the RCB there is no reason why he shouldn’t make a very good officer.”