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"I felt that it was time to return, now that Portugal was changing and giving us much better conditions, [and] that we should contribute to the development of the country," says Bruno Silva-Santos.

Franck Diafouka found at the EMEA the opportunity to study the impact of drugs in real life and work in a multinational and multicultural environment.

Diana Marques followed her passion for painting and biology separately until one day she saw an ad for a scientific illustration workshop.

"We are trying to define new syndromes and new diseases in human genetics," says M.D.-Ph.D. Heather Mefford.

The latest survey of AAAS life scientists finds that pay increases outpaced inflation, especially for postdocs.

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

"Scientists are always focused on experiments, gaining knowledge, but there is the human side that you need to be exposed to early on." -Anton Wutz

"Programs should provide all NRSA trainees with additional professional development skills and career guidance."

Systems Biology "is one of the areas as a postdoc that you have a chance to become a group leader early," Nicolas Le Novère, European Bioinformatics Institute, U.K.

"It was so different from anything else we experienced before. It was like we were on another world, like Mars." - Raymond Saumure, Wildlife Biologist at the Las Vegas Springs Preserve.

A rewarding career awaits those who can stand up to the field's fast pace and considerable demands.

My academic CV, which went on and on about kinetics, fluorescence, and other things that would have sent someone outside my field running, was thrown in the fire, and I started thinking hard about what transferable skills I had gained during my time in academia.

"You have a lot to learn, but when you can argue the case of your patent application successfully to a patent examiner, it's great," says Sarah Thompson.

Systems biology seeks to connect the dots between molecular data. It's a hot career field, but success requires making connections between disciplines.

"You have to tell them that you're ready to do independent research because as a postdoc you're not going to be held by the hand anymore," says Anna Moraitis, NSERC Industrial Research fellow.

"My stay has kept all its promises."

Making courageous career choices, says Linda Ko-Ferrigno, is a lot easier when "you have someone cheering you on."

If you stay in the lab, you can only be as innovative as yourself.

Scientists prepared to deal with a wide range of topics and to help translate findings from the laboratory to the clinic hold the future of research on human genetics and disease in their hands.