The College Podcast Challenge, now in its third year, received nearly 500 entries from students in 39 states and the District of Columbia. Back in March, we announced our 10 finalists, and earlier this month, we shared the story of Michael Vargas Arango, grand prize winner of the 2023 competition.

Beyond these entries, though, we also received 22 podcasts that caught our ears and that our judges thought had a strong story to tell. Here are the honorable mentions.

650 Words by Audrey Auerbach Nelson

Wesleyan University, Middletown, Conn.

A Hairy Situation by Jane Teran

Rutgers University, New Brunswick, N.J.

All I Want for Christmas is an Environmentally Friendly Tree by Amanda Maeglin

Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tenn.

Brown Sheep by Isaac Wetzel

Belmont University, Belmont, Tenn.

Bypassers by Aisha Wallace-Palomares

University of California, Berkeley

Cheese Chicanery by Jake Silva

Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, N.Y.

Colorism in the Pilipinx Community by Malaya Mosqueda

San Jose State University, San Jose, Calif.

Experiencing Freedom Again by Ngan Siu Mei

University of Texas at Austin

How We Live: The Student Athlete Edition by Atavya Fowler

Miami Dade College

It's Time To BeReal by Pari Goel

Duke University, Durham, N.C.

Juan's Upon A Time by Juan Miguel Manalo

Miami Dade College

Love Beyond Belief by Jack Lindner

Indiana University, Bloomington, Ind.

Palm Leaves by Suraj Singareddy

Yale University, New Haven, Conn.

Puzzles: Are they still playing with our minds? by Yasha Mikolajczak

University of Missouri-Columbia

Rolling Against Hate with the Homos by Audreyanah McAfee

University of California, Berkeley

Sidelined by Jack Ottomano

Pennsylvania State University

SOS 204 Parking by Juanita Hurtado Huerfano

University of Colorado, Boulder

The History of the Silent Disco by Sam Kohn, Rachel Kupfer-Weinstein and Jacob Sarmiento

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, San Luis Obispo, Calif.

The Sleep Study by Morgan Barela

California State University, Long Beach

The Yellow Wallpaper: An Audio Adaptation by Diego Vazquez, Avery Meurer and Timo Nelson

University of Texas at Austin

Two Ranchers from Mining for the Climate by Juan Manuel Rubio, Nate Otjen, Alex Norbrook, Grace Wang, and Max Widmann. Featuring Rebecca Buck and Lisa Stroup

Princeton University, Princeton, N.J.

UT's Tower Bells: A Musical Tradition by Shaunak Sathe

University of Texas at Austin

Congratulations everyone! Thanks again for sharing your stories with us. We loved listening to every minute of them. We hope to hear from you again this fall.

NPR's College Podcast Challenge will return Fall of 2024. Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest updates.

Tags: student podcast challenge  Series: Student Podcast Challenge