A career in academia allows oneself to have control of their own schedule – sometimes. It may depend on what experiments that person runs during the day which can extend the typical 9-5 to 9-9. Likewise with industry, a position within process development may possess experiments which take much more monitor time and may require more time on deck. Arguments that I would present to someone working in academia are the following: flexibility of time, control of area of research and projects/focus, collaboration among anyone basically. Someone working in academia can collaborate with as many scientists from a plethora of areas as they desire. Their projects can vary in areas of discipline and have no similarities or overlap. Someone in academia also may need to tend to a course or two to satisfy their role as a professor if they so choose.

A career in industry can allow for higher pay, change within departments, companies and areas of focus, similar to academia. One main difference is the control of content created. A device or patent is owned by the company whereas a professor who creates an invention owns those rights. Working in industry allows the person to travel to conferences likewise with a professor/researcher role. There is a much more stricter schedule placed on a person working within a company.