For a college student, it is not an unfamiliar feeling to feel “out of touch” or behind on the news. Whether it’s a brief conversation in one of your classes, or even a pop culture joke between your friends, not having knowledge on current events can have you feeling left out of many circles.

For me, it is not very realistic to order newspapers to my third story dorm room or turn on a news channel on the television I do not have. Therefore, I spent a generous amount of time looking for other ways to stay informed on what is going on in the rest of the world in a way that’s convenient for my schedule and entertaining enough to stay consistent. While these resources might not be the best for everyone, I hope I can provide some ideas or motivations on how to stay up to date with the news.

Podcasts

Whether you are wanting to learn about the stock market, foreign affairs or even celebrity news, there is most likely a podcast about it. Major news organizations such as the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, NPR, and NBC all have at least one, and usually more, daily podcasts. They release frequent episodes ranging from 5-45 minutes with all kinds of news and current events. Podcasts are wonderful because they are easy to listen to either on your way to class, during a workout, or even just as background noise!

A few of my favorite podcasts include:

• The Daily by The New York Times
• CNN 5 Things by CNN
• WSJ What’s News by The Wall Street Journal
• Pop Culture Happy Hour by NPR

Newsletters

Another one of my favorite ways to get a quick and consistent briefing on global updates is through newsletter subscriptions, which get sent right to my Gmail inbox. Just like podcasts, there are a plethora of newsletters on every topic ranging from quick bullet points to longer opinion articles. I find that these newsletters are great for reading in the morning, during a study break or right before bed.

Here are a few of my favorite newsletters:

• Morning Brew by Morning Brew
• 5 Things You Need to Know to Start Your Day by Bloomberg
• Worldview by The Washington Post
• On Politics by The New York Times

While my preference is newsletters and podcasts as a way to stay updated, you can also subscribe to news applications on your phone or even turning on the cable television. Regardless, it is important to stay on top of what is going on in the rest of the world, especially as a college student.

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