Fresno State Student Podcast Examines Finals, Campus Life Pressures

Fresno State student media released Episode 6 of the RamPod podcast, titled "Finals," on December 10, 2025. The installment brought together student reporters to document end of semester topics, capture student perspectives on finals season, and examine elements of campus life as the academic term concluded. The episode page includes episode details, contributor biographies and links to multimedia content for students and the wider university community.

Student contributors to the episode included Audrey Laney and Justin Shaw among others whose bios accompany the episode. Created and produced by student reporters, the installment is part of an ongoing RamPod series that focuses on campus issues, student experiences and topical stories affecting the Fresno State community. The multimedia format is designed to broaden access, allowing listeners to engage with audio segments and supporting online content provided on the episode page.

The immediate impact was informational and civic. For students, the episode provided a platform to surface concerns about academic workloads, exam scheduling and access to campus support services during a critical academic window. For administrators and university policy makers, the reporting serves as a real time gauge of student sentiment at the end of term and a resource for assessing the effectiveness of existing academic policies and student wellbeing programs.

Beyond immediate campus concerns, student produced journalism plays a role in civic engagement and institutional accountability. By documenting lived experiences during finals season, student media can inform debates within student governance, contribute to policy discussions about campus mental health resources and influence participation in campus elections where academic and support issues are often contested. Multimedia documentation and contributor transparency also strengthen the credibility of student reporting and invite constructive response from university offices.

As the semester closes, the RamPod episode functions as both a record of this finals period and a prompt for university actors to consider adjustments that respond to student needs. The series continues to offer a window into campus life and a channel for student voices to reach peers, faculty and administrators.