Sorry being late on the answer, but better late than never. Also a scientist here (applied physics, PhD, Europe). I have been stuttering since being a child and working in my field in an "applied reasearch" institute since 15 years. This is relevant because my institute is in a crossover between fundamental science (meaning: going to conferences etc.) and application-oriented engineering (meaning: selling stuff, going to and winning customers etc.). This means I have a lot of contact and have to talk to a lot of people internally as well as externally and about scientific stuff as well as about contracts and formal affairs. Like TormundsBearLover I always have received nothing but honest respect from all people inside and outside my company, from fellow scientists at conferences to customers. Being a scientist is tough work and I think that everyone who knows a bit about the things we do does realize pretty quick that it takes a brain for that, and that's important what we tell them, not the how. Never ever has my stutter lead to somebody seeing me as less "professional". What I also realized is that my stutter has significantly decreased during the last 15 years. I think that is due to the fact that I was constantly confronted with new challenges. Partly I was pushed doing this (e.g. my superiors telling me I'd have to speak at a conference), partly I took these due to my own initiative (e.g. starting and leading small projects because I had a idea and secured some funding). While working and mastering these new aspects and constantly being pushed out of my comfort zone, I think this did not only improve my self-esteem, but also totally took my focus away from my stuttering. Seemingly my brain though something along the way of "geez, now I really have to scrape all my cells together to get thing this right. I don't have no time to worry and care about stuttering, there are more important things to worry and be anxious about." Right now I'm leading my own research group and regularly get invited to give talks about my field. Don't let your stutter hold you back. There are more important things and tricky problems than stuttering out there to use your brain on. Go for it!