how do you become a scientist ?

Question: how do you become a scientist ?
- Keywords:
  career,
  education,
  work
Asked by johnliubrown to Jen, Jill, Mel, Phil, Stef on 14 Mar 2013.
- Jennifer Paxton answered on 14 Mar 2013:
  
  The normal route is to take science subjects at school and then take a science degree at University. Lots and lots of people work in science with a degree, but if you want to do work in a university or research institute, most people study for a PhD. This means you become a Doctor and eventually you can work on the stuff that interests you the most.
- Stefan Piatek answered on 16 Mar 2013:
  
  Jen nailed it, some people don’t take this classic route, but it’s generally true. I know a couple of medical doctors who have gone into science because they found out that’s where their hearts really lay, so for them they became a doctor and then did a PhD to become a scientist too!

Question: how do you become a scientist ?