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. Holly Molinaro
Challenge Type: Writing the dissertation, Qualifying/Comprehensive/Prospectus exam or defenseDr. Holly Molinaro is currently a consultant for General Mills and Blue Buffalo dog food company where she assists on understanding animal behavior to create better products. Her PhD research focused on animal emotions, specifically dogs, and her work now is focused on broadly helping people… Read more
Dr. Alice R. de Moraes
Challenge Type: Lab experiment, FieldworkDr. Alice R. de Moraes is currently a postdoc at University of Campinas (UNICAMP) in Brazil. Her dissertation research focused on stakeholder perceptions and social-ecological dynamics of ecosystem services in a rural setting in southeast Brazil, and her work now focuses on co-producing local… Read more
Dr. Corrado Nai
Challenge Type: Switching PhD programsDr. Corrado Nai is a science writer working as a freelancer currently based in Jakarta, Indonesia. Corrado’s dissertation research focused on microbiology, specifically on a special type of fungi who can live in the desert, called black fungi. His work now focuses on creating a graphic novel… Read more
Dr. Edauri Navarro Perez
Challenge Type: Lab experimentDr. Edauri Navarro-Perez is currently a postdoc at Arizona State University. Her dissertation research focused on roots, specifically how soil restoration treatments, in a greenhouse, affect root development. Now, her postdoc is through ESSA, Earth Systems Science for the Anthropocene, where she… Read more
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. Eric Riggs
Challenge Type: Finishing the dissertationDr. Eric Riggs is the Dean of the College of Natural Resources and Sciences at California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt. His dissertation research focused on the experimental mineral physics and mechanics of deep-focus earthquakes, but his work now, and for most of his career, has… 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