There are many differences one has to consider when deciding what career path to choose. I am not too exposed to the aspects of the industry field, but I have been exposed to research for about 3 years. An academic field is much more flexible, being able to come in at any time and finishing up experiments. However, the experiments do take some time to finish, and results are often never perfect. The rewards are that much more meaningful, however, when they are due. Patience is the key in this field since it takes a lot of time until results are shown, and benefits can finally be reaped. Research is always changing as well. It is not as routine as a job in industry. A lot of improvisation is needed in this field, which makes it much more exciting.

From my knowledge of industry job, I understand that it is much less flexible. Working as a phlebotomist, I was required to work from 8 am to 4 pm every day. However, I know that after working for some time, routine jobs become much more comfortable and allows you to perfect a certain skill set necessary for the job. Unlike jobs in academia, it also allows for promotions and working your way to the top of the field. It pushes you to work harder in order to be recognized and climb the ladder. An industry job also gives you much more experience working with other fields and interacting with much more people than those in an academic field.

In either case, the person can grow in either setting and can prefer either based on their preference and also their personality. Both can be rewarding in their aspects, and both require work and effort in order to make the experience meaningful.