A while back, I was asked to be a guest at the ‘Growing Up In Science’ conversation series. This series of events, initiated by Wei Ji Ma and Cristina Alberini in 2014, encourages scientists to talk about their personal journey, development, insecurities and struggles, and how they juggle the demands of academia with their personal journey. Below, I have described my (Rogier Kievit’s) story of Growing Up In Science.