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"What makes him special is his ability to judge which problems are the best to work on. Perhaps the most important skill for a researcher is being able to identify which problems you have a good chance of solving and which solutions would be most important." – John Preskill

"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."

Early-Stage Training fellowships offer Ph.D. researchers the opportunity to pursue specialised training for a period of 3 months to 3 years as part of their doctoral training.

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

Due to the high volume of questions received, the CareerDoctor cannot answer all queries on an individual basis. Look for an answer to your question published in this column soon! Thank you!

Get out and meet fellow researchers, and never turn down an opportunity to give a talk.

"I always felt that I have a deep personal connection to the ocean environment," says oceanographer Francis Smith.

There's no excuse for submitting a grant proposal without meticulously reviewing all the information about the program, including the fine print and recent changes, and talking to the program officer.

Go abroad for some time. That is how I got into a field that I could make a significant contribution to.

"By creating interest and momentum through the next IPY, I can see a real resurgence in opportunities for young scientists across Canada," says David Hik, Executive Director, Canadian Secretariat, International Polar Year.

"I still need to worry about money," says Graham Smith. The difference now is that he does not have to bring in money because of profit targets but "because of my curiosity about how the universe works. That's a very different motivation."

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.

"We are training chemists to think imaginatively about minimising environmental impacts and social and economic costs," says the Royal Society of Chemistry's Jeff Hardy.

Psychologists share tips for figuring out what's sapping your enthusiasm—and how to get it back.

The best and most popular stories of 2012, as chosen by readers and editors.

Identifying and addressing self-confidence issues can help early-career scientists make swifter progress.