• Question: do you have, of have you had, any regrets about becoming a scientist?

    Asked by tessa to Chris, Kay, Kerstin, Lorna, Liv on 18 Mar 2010 in Categories: .
    • Photo: Kerstin Zechner

      Kerstin Zechner answered on 18 Mar 2010:

      No, not really! Sometimes I regret working on worms rather than human cells, because it’s hard to get money to fund this research, but generally I’m glad I chose to do it.

    • Photo: Olivia Hibbitt

      Olivia Hibbitt answered on 18 Mar 2010:

      Hi tessa,

      well being a scientist, like every job, has its good and bad points. Scientists tend to work long hours, there is not much job security….you have to write funding proposals which are about as much fun as having your teeth pulled! But for me the good points over-rule all of that…..finding something out that is completely new is such a buzz….my lab is full of great people so we have a LOT of fun….talking at conferences is excellent…having students in the lab is also great! So no I don’t have any regrets!

    • Photo: Lorna Houlihan

      Lorna Houlihan answered on 18 Mar 2010:

      Hi Tessa,
      Honestly – some days I do. When I am fed up with work, wish I had lots of money to buy loads of clothes or my experiments don’t work. But I am sure that it’s the same for every job. I also think that the grass is always greener on the otherside.

    • Photo: Kay Penicud

      Kay Penicud answered on 18 Mar 2010:

      Not really, I mean the money isn’t great sometimes I would like to be able to afford to rent a nicer house, and sometimes when I’ve got to work yet another saturday afternoon because I need to look after my cells I wonder what else I could have done,

      However, every time I come to the conclusion that although my job isn’t perfect, there is nothing else I’d rather do! I have so much control over how I organise my time, and I find my work very very interesting.

    • Photo: Chris Needham

      Chris Needham answered on 19 Mar 2010:

      I don’t think I have any regrets about becoming a scientist. However, I do think that I spend too much time in front of a computer, and would like to spend more time out on long bike rides, particualr on sunny days like today. But there’s not many jobs that let you do that!

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