How to Start an Academic Podcast
Go from a great idea to a published show
USD $165 for lifetime access


Why podcasting?
Academic podcasting has exploded over the last decade, allowing scholars to broaden their research’s accessibility, enliven public conversations, and reshape what higher education means today.
How to Start an Academic Podcast is a self-paced, online course that helps you go from a great idea to a published show.
Whether you’re a professor building your public intellectual profile, a graduate student developing skills for diverse career paths, a librarian or research center director forging connections across institutions, or a department chair broadening your faculty’s impact, this course can help.
Join us to learn the technical, marketing, narrative, and community skills you need to get your academic podcast off the ground.
What you’ll learn
Planning Your Show
Lesson: What Makes a Great Podcast Pitch
Lesson: Identifying Your Audience
Getting Started
Lesson: Choosing a Format and Schedule
Lesson: Money, Money, Money
People
Lesson: Finding Cohosts and Collaborators
Lesson: Podcasting Communities
Tools of the Trade
Lesson: Equipment
Lesson: Hosting and Distribution Channels
Guests
Lesson: Researching and Booking Guests
Lesson: Onboarding Guests
Episodes
Lesson: How to Get Great Tape
Lesson: Interviewing Skills
Accessibility
Lesson: Transcripts
Lesson: Metadata
Promotion
Lesson: Show Notes
Lesson: Social Media
Course format
When you enroll, you get immediate access to all course materials.
Each lesson has a video, written transcript, and slide deck that explain key podcasting elements and take you through how to implement the material to create your own show.
You can work through the lessons at your own pace, in whichever order you prefer.
Lessons are always available so there’s no need to deal with instructor schedules or changing enrollment periods.
videos
slide decks
transcripts

Meet your instructor:
Dr. Cathy Hannabach
Hi I’m Dr. Cathy Hannabach, the creator and host of Imagine Otherwise, the show featuring the artists, activists, and academics who are building more just worlds.
Over the 5 years I’ve produced my show, I’ve fielded hundreds of questions from show fans and colleagues about what makes an academic podcast like Imagine Otherwise so successful.
A lot of you have also asked me why these kinds of podcasts are playing such a powerful role in remaking the academy today.
This course is my answer to many of these questions and more.
Although there are some great podcasting resources out there, almost none of them address the unique goals, careers, and resources of academics.
Furthermore, most of them are geared toward either businesses seeking marketing opportunities or journalists wanting to make the jump to audio content. These are both fine reasons to make a podcast, but they’re not usually the ones guiding interdisciplinary scholars.
I designed this course specifically for scholars within and beyond the academy who want to create a kick-ass show.
Come join me!
Frequently asked questions
When is the enrollment period for the course?
The course is always open for enrollment. You can join any time.
How do I access course materials?
The course is hosted on the educational platform Thinkific.
To access course materials after you enroll, log into your Thinkific account and navigate to the course page.
How long do I have access to course materials?
You always have 24/7 access to course materials. You do not lose access after a period of time.
You also get access to all additional lessons or materials we add to the course in the future.
Are there graded assignments?
The course is entirely self-paced and self-administered so no there are no graded assignments.
Upon enrolling you get immediate access to all course lessons so you can work through them with the order and pace that makes the most sense for your needs.
Does the course offer a certificate of completion?
Yes! When you complete all the lessons, you can download a customized completion certificate with your name, date of completion, and the title of the course.
How does payment work?
Payment is due in full when you enroll.
We accept payment via credit/debit card and PayPal.
Do you offer any additional courses?
Yep! You can check out our other offerings on our courses page.
Got an idea for a course you’d like to see us offer? We’d love to hear about it. You can email us at general@ideasonfire.net.