If discovering something new gives you a thrill, and you are driven by a passion for your subject, then a career in science or engineering may be for you. The options are many and varied, though the majority of jobs are in research and development. This might be in a university environment or an industrial environment, for a small and specialist firm or for a large and well-known company, even for the government. Lab-based work can be sociable and fun, and as you gain more experience, opportunities to take on more responsibility in administration and management will almost certainly arise. Working in an academic environment also gives you the option of teaching undergraduates, and staying or becoming more involved with university life.

If working in a lab doesn't appeal to you there are many other employers who will appreciate your scientific expertise. Entry is competitive and training is intellectually demanding, but work in patent law is a challenging and lucrative option for a scientist. If your written skills are excellent, then you might consider scientific writing, either technical or non-technical (see media section). Specialist consultancy is also a growing sector, particularly in engineering, and the recruitment demands are subsequently becoming tougher.

The Way In

A degree in science and engineering is vital to pursue a career in the field. The areas you choose to specialise in during your final year may have an impact on which positions are available to you, but this is probably less true of industry than of academia. A PhD is the natural progression from undergraduate science and engineering to university research. For industrial posts it may not be necessary, but will almost certainly improve your employability.
As in any field vacation work is immensely useful for getting some experience of 'real' science and engineering - probably a far cry from the practicals that form part of your undergraduate degree.

Key Skills

A passion for your subject and a drive to discover are essential to enjoy a career in Research & Development (R&D). The pace may be slow, two, even three, consecutive days might be the same, but the reward will come when you make that key breakthrough, or see your product on the shelf! Written and presentation skills are increasingly important - whether you are industrial or academic you will have to communicate your work on a regular basis.

Pay & Lifestyle

Starting salaries in R&D rarely compete with those in business and finance. As a PhD student you could be earning as little as £6,000. Nevertheless, salaries can rise quickly in industrial posts, and the larger corporate firms often offer packages that match any other discipline in their management recruitment schemes.

Chemical engineers are one of the best paid groups among the major engineering disciplines in Britain, but in any branch of engineering you can expect to start your career on around £18,000.