At the beginning of this year, Naturejobs introduced you to four new writers — graduate students who penned a monthly journal to provide you with an insight into the highs and lows of building a career in science. Six months on, their stories have undergone many twists and turns, and our correspondents have wrestled with dilemmas that will be familiar to many.

As he worked to complete his thesis, AIDS researcher Tshaka Cunningham at Rockefeller University in New York was weighing up the merits of doing his postdoc abroad. Unusually for a US-born scientist he chose to leave the Big Apple and head for France. Amber Jenkins, meanwhile, found herself flitting between Imperial College London and Fermilab's particle accelerator in Batavia, Illinois, as she chased data for her PhD. She has used these extended trips to evaluate whether her career should take her back home to Britain when she finishes her thesis.

Materials scientist Sidney Omelon at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto, Canada, is still wondering whether she should return to industry for a third time, stay with academia or pursue an alternative career. And Philipp Angerer at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich is trying to decide whether to join a company or start one after he defends his thesis.

A common theme for all four writers has been the need for balance between the lab and the outside world. They have also sometimes had to strike a balance between being mentors to younger co-workers and getting advice from their senior colleagues. Each instalment of these stories can now be found at the Naturejobs Graduate Channel (http://www.nature.com/naturejobs/channels/graduate/graduate-journal.html), so readers who missed early episodes can tune in. Whether you are just starting your scientific career, or nearing the end, these stories are likely to have you nodding your head in recognition.