Smarter Than a 5th Grader Auditions

Sadly, Smarter than a 5th grader seems to have retired to that great game show in the sky. However, in case it's revived, or just in case anyone is interested in what it TOOK to become a contestant, below are the hurdles contestants tackled to get on the show.

Critical Steps

• Print out and complete the Smarter Than a 5th Grader Application. (I used to link to this, but the link has since disappeared from Fox's site. *Sigh)
• Answer all questions honestly (no fibbing!) and to the best of your ability (don't let your dog fill out your application).
• Use dark colored ink.
• Write on the printed sides of paper only, but feel free to attach additional sheets of paper if necessary.
• Include a photo of yourself. (Your photo will not be returned.) And for Pete's sake, smile, okay?
• Mail the completed application and photo to the show.

Send Materials To:
SMARTER THAN A 5TH GRADER
P.O. BOX 503
149 S. Barrington Ave.
Los Angeles CA 90049-3310

You Must Be:

• 18 or older
• A legal resident of the United States.
• Not running for, or planning to run for, political office. (This probably explains why we never saw John McCain on the show.)

Who Pays Travel Expenses?

• The Bad News: If selected for an interview, you must be willing to travel to Los Angeles at your own expense. The show won't pay travel expenses for interviews. Bummer.
• The Good News: If selected to appear on the show, the producers will pay your economy airfare, lodging, and even give you a food allowance. Free grub! Yay!

Sample Questions from the 5th Grader Application

• My friends would describe me as:
• Even though it’s not true, people always assume about me:
• How competitive are you?
• What’s the funniest fact about yourself we don’t know?
• Do you have any surprising talents/tricks?
• How would you rate your intelligence on a scale of 1 to 10
• What is the highest level of school you have completed?
• Did you take the SATs in high school? If so, what were your scores?
• As a kid what did you want to be when you grew up?
• What is your greatest accomplishment in life so far?
• What would you do with $25,000?
• What would you do with a Million dollars?
• Of these three, which one would you spend the money on, and explain why: car, boat, or vacation.
• Have you ever been detained for, arrested for or convicted of a felony or misdemeanor offense?
• And more...

A whole bunch of more information, along with a ton of legalese, was contained on the official application. For example, if selected for a 5th Grader interview, you'd have to provide additional information and possibly be subjected to a background check. If you had nothing to hide, this is good news. If you'd just knocked off a liquor store, this is not-so-good news. There's always a catch, isn't there?