Fail-Safe Science Repository
Studies have shown that graduate students commonly feel as though successful scientists rarely experience challenges or failures. Fail-Safe Science is an initiative designed to normalize experiencing and overcoming challenges in science graduate programs. Below are videos of different scientists discussing the hurdles they encountered during their PhD programs, how they coped with the challenges, and what advice they have for current graduate students.
Search the repository by type of challenge and learn from successful scientists who have overcome obstacles throughout their graduate careers.
Explore our companion podcast.
Welcome to the Fail-Safe Science podcast, a collection of scientists sharing candid stories about challenges they faced in graduate school, how they overcame them, and advice for current students.
Fail-Safe Science Repository
Dr. Ellie Aerts
Challenge Type: Entering a new field/subspecialty; Navigating department/university culture; surviving domestic violenceDr. Ellie Aerts is a postdoc in reproductive neuroendocrinology at Oregon Health and Science University. Ellie’s dissertation research focused on the neural circuitry controlling the timing of puberty onset, and her work now focuses on the connections between meal timing and fertility. In this… Read more
Dr. Jennifer Bekki
Challenge Type: Lab experimentDr. Jennifer Bekki is currently a Professor in The Polytechnic School within the Fulton Schools of Engineering at Arizona State University, and also serves as the Associate Dean of Inclusive Excellence for the Fulton Schools. Her dissertation research focused on modeling and analysis of… Read more
Dr. Haider Ali Bhatti
Challenge Type: Navigating loss during graduate schoolDr. Haider Ali Bhatti is a postdoc at the University of California- Santa Cruz. Ali’s dissertation research focused on assessment in science education, where he looked at a course called “Bioinspired Design” at UC- Berkeley and measured student outcomes related to student success. His current… Read more
Dr. Sara Brownell
Challenge Type: Qualifying/Comprehensive/Prospectus exam or defenseDr. Sara Brownell is Professor and biology education researcher at Arizona State University, where she studies how students and instructors navigate concealable stigmatized identities in academic science. Sara transitioned to studying undergraduate biology education during her postdoc. She… Read more
Dr. Kendra Chritz
Challenge Type: Lab experimentDr. Kendra Chritz is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences at The University of British Columbia. Kendra’s dissertation research was on using geochemistry, particularly light stable isotopes, to explore the diets of ancient peoples of eastern Africa… Read more
Dr. Michele Clark
Challenge Type: Writing the dissertation, Navigating feedback on writingDr. Michele Clark is currently an American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) STPF fellow at the Department of Energy in Washington D.C. Her PhD research focused on the drivers of invasive plant species and plant distribution within community forests in subtropical Nepal, where… Read more
Dr. Tracy Kijewski Correa
Challenge Type: Navigating caregiving during graduate schoolDr. Tracy Kijewski-Correa a Professor in the Civil and Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences and Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame. She also serves as the William J. Pulte Director for the Pulte Institute for Global Development. Tracy’s dissertation research… Read more
Dr. Leah Jones Crank
Challenge Type: FieldworkDr. Leah Jones-Crank is an Assistant Professor in the School of Environment, Resources, and Sustainability at the University of Waterloo in Canada. Her PhD research focused on collaborative governance of the food-energy-water nexus in Phoenix, Arizona, and Cape Town, South Africa. Currently, she… Read more
Dr. Nsa Dada
Challenge Type: Navigating department/university cultureDr. Nsa Dada is an Assistant Professor in the School of Life Sciences at Arizona State University. Her PhD research focused on the interactions between mosquitoes and their associated microbes, specifically those that inhabit domestic water containers. She worked on the container dwelling… Read more