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. Fernando Salinas Quiroz
Challenge Type: Insignificant results, Academic bureaucracyDr. Fernando Salinas-Quiroz is currently an Assistant Professor in the Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Study and Human Development at Tufts University. Their dissertation research focused on assessing the quality of Mexican daycare. In their current position, they study with and for trans… Read more
Dr. Patricia Rankin
Challenge Type: Lab experimentDr. Patricia Rankin is currently a Chair and a Professor in the Department of Physics at Arizona State University. Her PhD research focused on particle physics, specifically charm photo production, and her work now primarily focuses on science policy, especially paving the way for women in STEM… Read more
Dr. Adam Reitzel
Challenge Type: FieldworkDr. Adam Reitzel is a Professor and the Associate Dean of Research and Graduate Education at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Adam’s PhD research focused on the ecology and evolution of sea anemones, and his work now focuses on the comparative genomics of marine invertebrates (… Read more
Dr. Nigel Rothfels
Challenge Type: Writing the dissertation, Going on the job marketDr. Nigel Rothfels is currently a Professor of History and Acting Vice Provost for Research at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaulkee. His dissertation research focused on how animals have been thought about in different historical times, but now his scholarly work is squarely in the humanistic… Read more
Dr. Mercy Salami
Challenge Type: Dissertation/Thesis defenseDr. Mercy Salami is a senior lecturer in the Department of Agricultural Economics and Farm Management at the University of Ilorin. Her dissertation research focused on the contribution of wild tree species to food security in northwestern Nigeria. Since then, her research has focused on the… Read more
Dr. Xyonane Segovia
Challenge Type: Lab experimentDr. Xyonane Segovia is an Assistant Teaching Professor at Arizona State University. Her dissertation research focused on malaria, specifically looking at resistance evolution of the malaria parasite. Now, she’s in a position where I teach various subjects including evolutionary medicine, global… Read more
Dr. Caren Souza
Challenge Type: Paper rejectionDr. Caren Souza is currently a postdoc at Federal University of São Carlos, Brazil. Her dissertation research focused on Conservation social science as an interdisciplinary approach for understanding socio-psychological factors related to pollinator conservation, and her work now focuses… Read more
Dr. Arvind Varsani
Challenge Type: Lab experimentDr. Arvind Varsani is a molecular virologist and a Professor in the School of Life Sciences at Arizona State University. For his PhD, Arvind focused on designing vaccines for human papillomavirus. Currently, his work focuses on the evolution of viruses across ecosystems. In this video, Arvind… Read more
Dr. Hong Wang
Challenge Type: Not meeting personal expectations, Navigating pregnancy/parenting in grad schoolDr. Hong Wang is a Professor in the Department of Physics at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC. Her PhD research focused on atomic force microscope imaging of protein and DNA complexes, and her current work focuses on single molecule studies of DNA repair. In this video, Hong talks… Read more