A couple of weeks ago, and with much trepidation, I knocked on the door of my adviser's office. I was about to tell him of my plan to leave the world of basic science research, and I had no idea how he would react. I had tried to imagine all of the possible outcomes of our conversation, and although I suspected that I could deal with any consequences, I honestly wasn't sure what would happen. Nevertheless, my growing discontent with lab research made it a conversation that I could no longer put off.

To my delight, my adviser was very understanding of my desire to pursue other interests, and immediately asked what I wanted to do and how he might be able to help. As a result of our conversation I have decided to continue working in the lab for now, focusing my attention less on the basic biological processes and more on the multiple public-policy issues related to our area of research. Given my burgeoning interest in policy matters, this is definitely a step in the right direction.

In my first journal entry, I gave myself two to three years to determine whether I wanted to make a career out of science research. A year later, I've concluded that it's time to start exploring other options. After all, there's much out there to explore, and there's no time to spare.