Investigadores en etapa temprana de la carrera (<i>early career researchers</i>): características y dilemas de la fase inicial de la carrera de investigación

This article explores the existing knowledge on scientific careers (or research careers), identifying the dimensions they share with career sociology and organizational studies while highlighting the features that distinguish them from career paths in other fields. Our focus is on the early career stage, a critical phase in research trajectories. This stage is emphasized in both the literature and public policy as a pivotal period in shaping a “successful” research career. Through a critical review of the literature, this study examines key points of consensus and fundamental topics related to research careers, particularly in the context of this specific issue. The analysis suggests that studying this career stage offers valuable insights into how research careers are structured and organized within different national contexts. These insights can support diagnostic, monitoring, and comparative processes, contributing to the effective management of one of the core elements of higher education institutions and science, technology, and innovation systems: their human resources.