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"This choice was more practical because you try to build up a career, and if you do what people are already doing, you need to be very good, but also lucky, to make it," says Edwin Cuppen.

"Try and identify the people that can really teach you and help you very quickly," says Diego Centonze.

"Even if being back at a postdoc position was quite difficult," says Valentina Emiliani, "this was a necessary step."

"They can be very good computer scientists, but they will not be hired if they don’t fit in the company culture" of Google, says new employee Oliver Heckmann.

Although "the researcher is free to do whatever he wants," says Marché, "I will be working in a team, so I will necessarily get interested in their field of research."

In Spain, "Most people integrate into an existing and functioning lab," which gives them less freedom," says de Nalda Minguez.

Although Hébrard advises anyone with a passion in astronomy to go for it, he warns that "keeping your eyes and mind open is a good way to start in such a research field."

"Cases very soon demonstrated a great capacity for working with software and developing systems, a capacity that is unfortunately quite exceptional in experimental biologists." --Systems biologist Alfonso Valencia.

"[Schürmann] asked very important questions concerning the feasibility of the project, but did not do so sceptically, which indicated to me that ... he was already preparing to take on the challenge," says director of the Blue Brain Project Henry Markram.

Guillaume Bourtourault's enduring interest in environmental matters, his drive to pursue a career even when it was marginalised, and his vision for sustainable development are what made it all possible.

The couple started looking "around in the world [to see] where we could both have nice positions," and they found what they were looking for in Spain.

"You have to be lucky, because there is a lot of good people and they [too] deserve the position," says Collard.

What makes mentoring relationships successful?