It was not until March 1987 when Mr Edward Vincent, then Executive Director of Mensa International (MI), visited Singapore before any further efforts to register the society were brought up again. Mr Vincent conducted a talk entitled “Mensa Talks and Test Sessions” and subsequently invited Singaporean members of Mensa International to a follow up cocktail party. During the party, held at the Hilton Hotel on 19 May 1987, he announced his intention of setting up a local Mensa chapter and asked for volunteers. Two gentlemen, Mr Narinderpal Singh Bhalla and Mr Kannan Chandran came forward and began to form the Protem Committee which aimed to get Mensa (Singapore) registered.

Over the next few meetings, other interested Singaporean members of MI joined the Protem Committee. The office bearers were Mr Bhalla (Hon. President), Mr Chandran (Hon. Vice President), Ms Daphne Wong Hsiao Ya (Hon. Secretary) and Mr Chen Fei Wei (Hon. Treasurer). Dr Gerald Wong, Mr Adrain Tan, Ms Bernadette Chung, Mr Thomas Yeo, Mr Toh Kok Seng, and Mr Steven Ong formed the rest of the committee.

While the Protem Committee had various concerns such as selecting an appropriate psychologist to conduct testing and obtaining funds for publicity, the priority centered on drafting the constitution to suit the requirements of both MI and ROS. With funding from MI, Lee & Lee Solicitors were engaged to guide the Protem Committee in the application to the ROS. This was done because the committee was not very familiar with the requirements and practices in the ROS application process.

On 3 January 1988, Mr Chandran informed the meeting that Mr Bhalla had stepped down as Hon. President because he was leaving permanently for Canada. The Protem Committee then elected Mr Chandran to take over from Mr Bhalla as Hon. President. During that time, Mr Png Kim Chiang also joined the committee. The Protem Committee submitted a formal application to the ROS to register Mensa (Singapore) in March 1988 and after waiting for more than a year, the determination and perseverance of the early founders finally paid off. Word arrived on 28 May 1989 that Mensa (Singapore) would become a reality.

Amidst the general jubilation, a decision was made to launch the society in a grand manner, with lots of activities to create interest and awareness, and to coincide with the inaugural general meeting. Again, with financial support from MI, advertisements were placed in the New Paper and the Straits Times to invite the public to take the admission test and join Mensa. On 15 October 1989, these initial test sessions began at Braddell Primary School, and the rest as they say, is history.

Next: Calendar | How to Join | Contact Us

Regular Monthly Gatherings
Mensa Singapore has organizes several monthly gatherings, namely:

• Chill and Chat – Want to hang loose and chill out after a hard month’s work? Then join us at any of the Chill & Chat sessions to catch up with friend over an afternoon of board and card games. Held every last Sunday afternoon of the month.
• Soapbox – Come and listen to a talk, seminar, or discussion about anything under the sun! Past events have covered all sort of things from improving your memory, to dance and poetry as well as tips for becoming an entrepreneur. Usually held every second or third Saturday afternoon of the month.
• Networking Lunch – Take a break from your cube farm and join other Mensans for lunch (you have to eat too right?). Great food, and even better company. Held every first Wednesday lunch time of the month.

For more information about our activities, please check our calendar.

Branches
Mensa Singapore currently has three branches in the three publicly funded universities catering especially to students and staff of those educational institutions. Should anyone be keen to establish new branches in other educational institutions or organisations, please do not hesitate to contact us. Our branches are at:

• National University of Singapore - NUS Mensa
• Nanyang Technological University
• Singapore Management University - Mensa @ SMU

Menews
Mensa Singapore publishes a regular electronic newsletter, Menews, full of updates on upcoming Mensa Singapore events. There are also plenty of light-hearted and serious articles, contributions from local Mensans, commentaries, stories, photos as well as news and articles from other Mensa organizations around the world for your enjoyment.

Mensa Email Account
All fully paid-up Mensans are entitled to a free email service with the Mensa Singapore domain. You can now have your email address xxxx {at} mensa.org(.)sg.

Service for Information, Guidance and Hospitality to Travellers (SIGHT)
SIGHT is a unique program that helps Mensans traveling to meet and interact with Mensans wherever they may be in the world. Mensa Singapore’s SIGHT coordinator who not only helps take care of overseas visiting Mensans, but can also assist you in connecting with Mensa chapters in other countries when you visit them.

Special Interest Groups (SIGs)
Mensa Singapore has plenty of Special Interest Groups (SIGs) to whet your appetite. To participate in a SIG, simply contact the SIG Coordinator to sign up. But if you can’t find one to suit your tastes, then feel free to start one of your own and find other like-minded Mensans. Some SIGs to grace our shores include areas of interest such as architecture, a cappella music, financial markets, Asian pop, rock climbing, entrepreneurship, cooking, inventions, magic, parenting, fencing, software engineering, writing and much, much more!

Special Events
From time to time, Mensa Singapore organizes various special events, outings and projects. Here is a short list of the various past events organized to give you an idea of what we do:

• Mensa Singapore @ Bookfair
• Brainhunt by NTU Mensa
• Yum Sing! Charity Dinner Musical in aid of the Singapore Autistic Association
• Mensa International Board of Directors / International Governing Council Meetings hosted in Singapore
• Olympics of the Mind / Junior Olympics of the Mind (in association with Singapore Indian Development Association)
• International Forum on Intelligence
• Movie Night (in association with YMCA)
• Mensa-MCYS Teen-Parent Forum (supported by the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports)
• Mensa International Photo Competition
• The Great Mensa Challenge
• NETS-Mensa Innovator Series Competition (in association with Network for Electronic Transfers (Singapore) Pte. Ltd.)
• Mensa Youth Apprentice (in association with the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports’ month-long Shine! Project)

Next: Founding of Mensa Singapore | Calendar | How to Join | Contact Us

Mensa “provides a forum for intellectual exchange among members. Its activities include the exchange of ideas by lectures, discussions, journals, special-interest groups, and local, regional, national, and international gatherings; the investigations of members’ opinions and attitudes; and assistance to researchers, inside and outside Mensa in projects dealing with intelligence or Mensa.” [Mensa Constitution]

Mensa has three stated purposes:

1. to identify and foster human intelligence for the benefit of humanity;
2. to encourage research in the nature, characteristics and uses of intelligence; and
3. to promote stimulating intellectual and social opportunities for its members.

Mensa was founded in Oxford, England, in 1946 by Roland Berrill and Lancelot Lionel Ware. Berrill was an Australian expatriate licensed to practice law. Dr. Ware was a Ph.D. on his way to becoming a barrister who had become interested in intelligence testing while working at the National Institute for Medical Research. They met by chance on a train and subsequently corresponded, primarily about the possible formation of a club – a longtime dream of Ware’s. Early in 1946, Ware administered the Cattell III test to Berrill, and Berrill went off in search of his constituency. On Oct. 1, 1946, Berrill had the first piece of Mensa literature printed, and the date is now the recognized founding date for the organization.

Photo of Dr. Lancelot Ware

The word “mensa” means “table” in Latin; similarly, “mens” means “mind” and “mensis” means “month”. The name Mensa is reminiscent of “mind”, “table”, and “month”, which suggests a monthly meeting of great minds around a table, where race, color, creed, national origin, age, politics, educational or social background are irrelevant. As such, the society welcomes people from every walk of life whose intelligence is in the top 2% of the general population, with the objective of enjoying each other’s company and participating in a wide range of social and cultural activities.

There is simply no one prevailing characteristic of Mensans other than high intelligence. There are Mensans for whom Mensa provides a sense of family and others for whom it is casual. There have been many marriages made in Mensa but for many people, it is simply a stimulating opportunity for the mind. Almost certainly, most Mensans have a good sense of humor and they like to talk. And, usually, they have a lot to say.

Mensa takes no stand on politics, religion or social issues. Because Mensa encompasses people from so many different countries and cultures, and with many different points of view, for Mensa to espouse a particular point of view would go against its role as a forum for all points of view. Of course, individual Mensans often have strong opinions. It is said that in a room with 12 Mensans you will find 13 differing opinions on any given subject.

Globally, and in Singapore, Mensans range in age from 4 to 94, but most are between 20 and 49. In education, they range from preschoolers to high school dropouts to people with multiple doctorates. There are Mensans on welfare and Mensans who are millionaires. As far as occupations go, the range is staggering. Mensa has professors and truck drivers, scientists and firefighters, computer programmers and farmers, artists, military people, musicians, laborers, police officers, glassblowers - you name it. There are famous Mensans and prize-winning Mensans, but there are many, many whose names you wouldn’t know.

Next: Mensa International | Mensa Singapore | How to Join