The argument I’d present for working in Academia would be time flexibility. In Academia, you have the leisure to work on projects at a time that is easiest for you, rather than a fixed 8am to 5pm schedule everyday like in industry. I have experience working in Academia and I’d say that this was the greatest advantage I had. I’d walk into the lab sometimes around 12pm, and start working on a project, and leave as soon as I was finished. Some days are shorter than others, while some days were longer. But overall, as long the work was complete, you had the advantage to start at whatever time suited you best.

The argument I’d present for working in Industry is that you get paid more. Although industry is more fast-paced, and has a fixed time schedule; you are getting back just as much as you are putting in. In Academia, you can work day and night, but only until you produce good data will it be noticed. In industry, you are working hard as well but, your efforts are getting rewarded daily.