IMO, unless you experience both, you can’t really answer that. And different companies and dept. have very different cultures too. It particularly annoys me when graduate students express certitude about this without having done either. https://twitter.com/eshonjosephine/status/1296619148961673216

When I was in GS I was a 100% sure I wanted to do Process. Someone once told me they thought I would be good at MedChem and it made no sense to me. Now, I’ve spent more than half my career embedded in discovery, working hand in hand. I attend MedChem and Process conferences.

I can totally see how I could have done a move to MedChem (and almost did). Who knows, one day maybe. But I think I’ve always had a special place for synthesis and thinking deeply about chemistry and that’s what keeps me on the Process side. Both jobs can be Awesome!