> and you observe other students putting similar amounts of effort, but obtaining much better results, understanding things more quickly and getting better ideas, you should probably just drop out
I'm sorry, but even if this is true under some circumstances, this seems like terrible general advice, and only matters if your only goal is to reach the top echelons of your field. That doesn't mean there is no room for "average" researchers. This is a binary mindset that ignores the value of the discipline and seems like gatekeeping with no apparent benefit.
And struggling relative to your peers can happen for many reasons unrelated to core intelligence.
I'm sorry, but even if this is true under some circumstances, this seems like terrible general advice, and only matters if your only goal is to reach the top echelons of your field. That doesn't mean there is no room for "average" researchers. This is a binary mindset that ignores the value of the discipline and seems like gatekeeping with no apparent benefit.
And struggling relative to your peers can happen for many reasons unrelated to core intelligence.