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"I like the fact that I'm steering my own ship in terms of research. I feel like an entrepreneur." --Lance Silverman

Here are six examples of behavioral scientists who have stepped off the academic path into some interesting territory.

For behavioral scientists considering a career in public polling research, it helps to have a fascination with numbers.

"To me, having a Ph.D. and being a professor is a lifelong learning experience. The degree, to me, is to teach you how to teach yourself later on." --Adil Shamoo

"Interactive museums have sprouted around Italy and across Europe as the European Commission and individual nations have placed science-and-society issues higher on the agenda."

Sometimes, accepting a contract position is what an employee needs to jump-start a career.

"A mother is continually training in how to manage her time and organise her work. This is key [to success in entrepreneurship], beyond having guts and imagination," says Claire Dutertre.

"Whether it's how we treat the environment or each other, it's all connected," says Martina Hoft, conservation botanist and real estate broker.

"I don't know anybody who hasn't been able to get a job that's been trained in high-temperature superconductivity, but the number of them who go on and study the same things is limited," says Christopher Lobb, a professor at the University of Maryland's Center for Superconductivity Research.

"I had the good sense to have a serious accident when the market was down." --Cynthia Robbins-Roth

"I feel like I'm making a useful contribution not only to the company but to the environment," says chemical engineer John Ma of Dow Chemical Canada.

There is often more to a job in a nanotech company than ordinary R&D work.

All of them entered teaching because they love science and interacting with students.

Teachers perform a service to society by inspiring and training the next generation of scientists, mathematicians, engineers--and teachers.

"I am a scientist, and I have fun with science every day." --Jane Snell Copes

“We are looking for people who have a history of publishing and presenting. If the résumé doesn’t have those two key elements, they’ll be at a competitive disadvantage.” - Ron Webb, Procter and Gamble

"He said I could go back to school, or I could be a missionary and translate the bible into foreign languages. So I went to school." --Jessica Maye

“What most pharma look to me for is my 10 years of experience in pharmacogenomic clinical drug trial design and result interpretation,” says Judes Poirier, director of McGill University’s Centre for Studies in Aging.

RyC fellows have a harder time fitting within the Spanish academic system unless their university decides to make a welcoming gesture.