Science is a profession, not a religious vocation, and not justify an oath of

poverty or celibacy.

 

Of course, you don't go into science to get rich.

I made that choice too. I became a scientist in order to
have the freedom to work on problems which interest me. But you probably
won't get that freedom. As a postdoc you will work on someone else's ideas,
and may be treated as a technician rather than as an independent
collaborator. Eventually, you will probably be squeezed out of science
entirely. You can get a fine job as a computer programmer, but why not do
this at 22, rather than putting up with a decade of misery in the
scientific job market first? The longer you spend in science the harder you
will find it to leave, and the less attractive you will be to prospective
employers in other fields.