Mensa says 'one size fits all' university courses make gifted students dumber BRAIN DRAIN: Mensa says Queensland's "one size fits all" university system is disadvantage gifted students, leading to depression and underachievement. GIFTED university students face depression, social isolation and underachievement as they are choked in a system that ``dumbs down" courses to meet the needs of struggling students. So says the Australian arm of Mensa, which is funding groundbreaking research into how to nurture young students who are ahead of the IQ curve. Spokeswoman Ainslie Waldron said members who were students and lecturers were "extremely concerned" that gifted students would be lost and anonymous in the tertiary education system. "Some of these young people leave the school system where they have been challenged by teachers who see their talents and they arrive at uni where no one knows that they are bright and can do more," she said. There is not the same personal interaction today (at universities) due to online services. Members would like to see students being able to fast-track courses. Dr Helen Stallman, senior lecturer in the School of Medicine and Pharmacy at The University of Queensland, is using a grant from Mensa to launch a study to identify gaps in the university system. She says "one size fits all" university courses could disadvantage bright students. ``I come across students who have become depressed, isolated, unmotivated and therefore underachieving," Dr Stallman said. There is no extension work and no recognition for these students. There are cases where we are bringing the curriculum down to fit the poorer performers. ``Over the coming months we will hold focus groups and talk out the problems and hopefully set in motion some changes that will boost our best students rather than hold them back. Third year pharmacy student Elleicia Box, 20, gained an OP of 2 and said most students in her course had a similar level of intelligence. ``I do think it would be a good idea that, if you were capable, you could fast-track your course and maybe get out into the workforce a bit earlier," she said. The Queensland Association of Gifted and Talented Children says there are more than 80,000 gifted students enrolled in Queensland and 400,000 across the nation.