Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums THINKING BIG About Gifted Education A warning from a gifted adult.

I'd feel a little guilty in college when I'd ask the professor a deep detailed question looking aroung the nuances of the subject. Then someone would ask: Will this be on the test? or such and I'd feel a bit righteous.

The person teaching at the university is first an expert and passionate in their field. If you ask for complexity and depth in their field in a genuine interest to delve, there is a good chance they'll be happy to have someone as interested in their subject as themselves. If it is simply a statement of wishing challenge, that's something else.

I don't remember a class in college that required me to ask them to provide extra depth as I could see areas to explore myself. Education is not something that is fed to you, it is something you garner unto yourself. I had a few "pet" professors with whom I could make 10-15 minute meetings to talk about material I'd been rooting out myself outside of class.

I think a lot depends on the professor.

I took an introductory chemistry class in college. At some point, the professor said we could write an essay for extra credit. I thought that the essay topics were all kind of fluffy, so I asked her if I could write about a topic in nuclear chemistry instead. I told her what I wanted to put into the essay and she gave me a green light. It was great!

thanks for all of your input! It is wonderful to hear from others with similar experiences.

What do you all think of MENSA, out of curiosity?

I am unsure of the purpose of it and if it is even worth consideration.

Sure it might look good on a resume, but there is also the danger of scaring away employers with this, right?

I can't help but wonder why people sign up for it--is this simply for bragging rights?

I suspect that people who "scare away employers" by putting their IQ score (or SAT score, or Mensa membership) on their resume are not scaring away employers for the reason they think they are.

IMHO, social memberships do not belong on professional resumes.

(I've been to a meeting of the local Mensa chapter; I think the people who joined mostly did so to meet like-minded folks.)

Alex's Mom: If there were a "like" button present here as there is on facebook, I would have clicked it for your response! =]

They're being flagged as "socially awkward and/or clueless" that's for sure.

I suspect that "Name of Undergraduate College Attended" is the way that employers screen for intelligence these days.

It always worked ok for me (Mensa on resume) although I did get some strange interview questions, like "What's it like being surrounded by people who are not as smart as you."

(sigh) Good grief.... as if life experience and perspective means nothing. People are strange. I just don't understand them. (Not so smart after all ;p ) lol

QT3.1414,

Does your interest in Medieval Literature extend to studying Medieval Latin and other languages? Learning new languages is always challenging and interesting... and humbling.

Does your school allow undergrads to do independent study or offer research funding?

Hello to all of you =)

Whatisinevidence..I have a question for you...

First off, do you consider yourself a positivist and/or an empiricist? Just wondering based on your name =)

and yes, I would love to study Latin--French is my first language so I find a significant amount of French words deriving out of Latin (which is fun)

Right now, I am trying to work on something called "quantitative literature" where I like to apply mathematical modeling and statistical methodologies to understanding literature, philosophy, and psychology. It probably does not amount to much but it gives me a lot to do and I thoroughly enjoy the challenge =)