5 podcasts that will help you get through your final year at university

Podcasts can be inspirational, informative, or just help you manage to laugh after crying over recent diss feedback.

Here's a list of some incredible podcasts that you need to listen to.

The one for the entrepreneur: How I Built This with Guy Raz

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Three years ago today, we launched How I Built This with a small team of amazing people. It was a side project—just for fun. Today we’re marking the day with our 17th live show! Thank you everyone who’s joined our community of listeners. We love you!

A post shared by Guy Raz (@guy.raz) on Sep 12, 2019 at 3:43am PDT

For those who have the dream of owning their own business post-graduation, or are simply looking for a kick to get themselves in gear, Guy Raz's podcast, which interviews highly successful entrepreneurs and innovators, might just be the inspiration you need. The podcast's concept is best described by Gaz himself, who labels each episode 'a narrative journey marked by triumphs, failures, serendipity, and insight—told by the founders of some of the world's best-known companies and brands'. Interviews include the creators of Instagram Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger, Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard and co-founder of AirB&B Joe Gebbia.

The one for honest talk about mental health: Happy Place

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I adore @katiepiper_ so was over the moon that she agreed to be on My podcast live at the Happy Place Festival 2019. I have never met anyone with so much resilience and love to give. She is also able to clearly demonstrates the boundaries she needs to remain compassionate to others which is something many of us forget about. I learned a lot about life and self love during this recording and can’t thank Katie enough for her time and energy. #happyplace link in bio to listen

A post shared by Fearne (@fearnecotton) on Sep 16, 2019 at 12:23am PDT

The stress of final year can be felt even before summer ends. It's a well-known fact that the commitments of dissertations, grad-job applications and the looming notion that university is nearly over can induce, well, a bit of an existential crisis. Fearne Cotton talks openly with different public figures about mental health in a casual, normalised way that reassures you and puts things into perspective. The podcast will leave you with a feeling akin to having a deep chat with your closest friends. Great for mid-semester panic mode.

The one for respite: My Dad Wrote A Porno

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One week until #PornoDay

A post shared by My Dad Wrote A Porno (@mydadwrotea) on Sep 2, 2019 at 12:04am PDT

Consistently at number one of the UK comedy podcasts, you'll struggle to find a podcast or radio show that makes you laugh as much as My Dad Wrote A Porno. The premise is in the name as Jamie Morton does what most people would avoid at all cost in reading aloud his dad's erotic fiction. Yes, it is just as funny as you can imagine. The podcast has now generated a cult following which, if anything, makes the series even funnier to see how invested people have become in perhaps the most terribly written pornographic book series in the world.

The one for information and inspiration: Ted Talks Daily

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This is Alex Honnold climbing a 3,000-foot vertical cliff without a rope. We hope this is self-explanatory, but we just want to be abundantly clear: do not try this at home. Seriously. Just don’t. Alex is a professional, and he trains extensively for these types of incredible (and anxiety-inducing) athletic feats. Check out the link in our bio to watch his #TEDTalk for the full story of how he summited Yosemite’s El Capitan. Photo courtesy of @alexhonnold

A post shared by TED Talks (@ted) on Aug 27, 2019 at 12:51pm PDT

A lot of students spend their life reading books, articles, reports and pages of research. Sometimes it's nice to gain knowledge just through listening, TED Talks Daily offers precisely this. With talks from people across all walks of life and experts in their own sector, each episode can provide real insight into fields that you might previously have had no time to learn about. The episodes are often incredibly inspiring, which can be exactly what you need when writing that mid-term paper just doesn't seem to be happening.

The one for feelings of despondency: How to Fail: Elizabeth Day

'Failure is nothing to be scared of': After unsuccessful IVF treatment, a miscarriage and a divorce, author and podcaster @elizabday shares why it's important to learn from personal setbacks.
Read more here: https://t.co/AEChFPwmaJ pic.twitter.com/K3HeFlIYay

— ITV News (@itvnews) April 6, 2019

Final year means putting a lot of yourself out there in terms of coursework, exams, applications and interviews. Failure is something constantly faced nearing the end of university, which is why it's so important to see our defeats in a different light. Elizabeth Day's podcast, in which she chats with highly successful individuals about their biggest failures, reminds us all of the value of failing. Each episode reveals how failure can often be more useful to personal development than our successes in teaching us how to come back better than before.

Can't get enough? For more subject-related podcast suggestions click here.