Why So Many Scientists Feel Lost in Their Careers (And What to Do About It)

The Silent Career Crisis in Science

For many scientists, the career path is straightforward — at least at first. You earn your degrees, work through postdocs or industry roles, and follow the trajectory that seems to be laid out for you.

It’s demanding, but it’s also rewarding in its own way. Until one day, you wake up and wonder: Is this really it?

This is a question few people talk about openly in science. The assumption is that if you keep pushing forward, you’ll eventually reach that elusive sense of success. If you leave academia, you’ll feel a sense of relief. If you land a stable job in industry, you’ll finally feel secure.

And yet, many scientists — even those who have reached their career goals — find themselves feeling lost.

I know this feeling well. I was, and I’m still there sometimes.

I had followed the expected path: PhD, research, postdoc, professor.

Each step looked like progress from the outside, but something never quite felt right. At first, I brushed it off. Maybe I just needed more time.

A new project. A change of scenery. Maybe I just needed to work harder. But no matter what I did, that feeling didn’t go away. And once I allowed myself to acknowledge it, the real questions started to surface.

Am I actually enjoying what I’m doing, or am I just moving forward because it’s what I’m supposed to do?

If I leave, will I have wasted all these years of training?

Am I even allowed to want something different?

These thoughts resurfaced even after I transitioned into the nonprofit and then public sector. What was wrong with me?

The truth is that most scientists are never given the space to ask these questions. In academia, stepping away is often equated with failure. In industry, the expectation is that you keep climbing the corporate ladder.

There is little room for reevaluation, and so we stay — until burnout, frustration, or disillusionment forces us to make a change.

But what if we didn’t wait until we reached that breaking point?

What if, instead of seeing career shifts as failures or crises, we saw them as a natural part of growth?

Staying in a career just because of the time already invested is like refusing to leave a movie you dislike simply because you paid for the ticket. There is no single path to a meaningful career, and more importantly, there is no rule that says you have to remain in a role that no longer aligns with your values or aspirations.

If you’ve ever had that uneasy feeling — if you’ve ever questioned whether the path you’re on is the right one — you are not alone. These thoughts aren’t a sign that something is wrong with you. They are a sign that you are evolving. And the first step in navigating this evolution is allowing yourself to ask: What do I actually want?

This is a conversation that needs to happen more in science. Over the coming weeks, I’ll be exploring these questions in depth — why so many scientists feel lost in their careers, what makes work feel meaningful, and how to realign career paths with purpose.

If this resonates with you, make sure you subscribe to my newsletter. There’s a lot more to discuss.