Coming to university can be a daunting experience. Often it is the first time away from home, and meeting so many new people and facing new demands can feel overwhelming. This is where university chaplains play an important role: they are there to provide support and guidance for all students, of any faith and none. Often, what students bring to them are big questions about life and death, but part of a chaplain’s role is also to explain the nature of different faiths to those outside them.

In Faith on Campus, which won the third prize in our Things Unseen podcast competition, Philip Lickley speaks to Christian and Muslim chaplains from the University of Bradford to find out what their work entails and how they handle it.

Here’s what the judges said:

“We felt that the podcast tackled a subject that works well for the Things Unseen target audience. The presentation was confident and had a good sense of immediacy, and the introduction drew us in. It was nice to have a spark of humour, with the Muslim chaplain who was asked by a student whether she wears her hijab in the shower a definite highlight! Not hearing any student voices was a little disappointing. However, it was good to have a multi-faith approach to the subject, and overall the voices we heard had a freshness which we enjoyed.”

Philip Lickley is 28 and a marketing manager at the Students’ Union at Bradford.