Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong. One does not become __________ (Fill in the blank) because it pays good or because it comes with benefits or because one looks good wearing the clothing of that career choice. One goes into a field because all one can do is think, sleep, eat, drink, and think some more about the field they are in. To be a scientist means one has to be passionate about the field of science one is in - for any other reason you will never enjoy your work and will waste a lot of your time, energy and money pursuing education for a thing you will come to loath. Tenure is the word you need to look up and study. I am hard pressed to think of a field of science that that does not come with. Scientists usually get good pay anyways - the smarter they are the better they are paid. Those who have padded their future with breakthroughs or a paper that really spins the science community get tenure, professorships and all of these other add ons. So find what field of science suits your interests - what do you want to spend the rest of your life studying and trying to figure out how it works? Is it the cosmos? Is it biology, geology, are you really into everything about the Guinea Worm and can base a life long study of that rare and endangered creature? One should never ever get into a field of science material wealth - never. To do so means you will be a bad scientist - forever.

I am going to have to Athrael in that you should pick a science that you find enjoyable. However, there are so many different sciences that it would be difficult give you an assessment as to what the career opportunities are like without knowing what your interests are. For example, are you interested in geology? If so, then the big area of interest is in environment geology. Economic geology could also be good because that would open up opportunities with private mining companies as well as government and academic positions. Petroleum geology could be a good choice if you are willing to work outside of the US. (There are so many restrictions on the oil industry in this country that are stopping exploration here. So, there are not many jobs for petroleum geologist here.) So, what you need to do is figure out which branch of science you want to go into and what you want to do with it. Then you need to look at the available career opportunities. For me personally, I decided that I wanted to teach on the college level. The problem was what to teach. I was vacillating between astronomy and geology until my parents bought a book on volcanoes. I found them so fascinating that I decided that's what I wanted to study. The problem was that that field of study is really limited in career opportunities. So, it took me quite a while to actually find a teaching position after I got done with my master's degree. So, look at what you enjoy and the look at the opportunities within the field. If you come back to us with more specific question about various fields of study, then perhaps we can give you more specific answers as to career opportunities.

Yes; I think both the above have merits. It is vitally important to find something quite enjoyable to you. But, as Glenn intimates, you could finish up like Mozart - a genius but poorer than a doormouse - to the point that you cannot even afford your own public burial!! If you fancy them, I would suggest most engineering fields do quite well - especially, electronic. Also, computer science: if you are methodical, analytical and of some mathematical disposition, programmers generally make good money.