College radio, and radio in general, is an underappreciated medium among CRLS students. With the advent of streaming, why listen to something someone else is playing when you could choose the music yourself? Well, as editors who spend a lot of time listening to college radio, we’re here to tell you all to do the same. Radio gives you feelings that streaming simply can’t capture: Letting go of the controls and letting someone else find your new favorite song or remind you of one you always loved. Greater Boston specifically has a range of college radio stations to tune into, so we’ve compiled them into a list to help you get your feet running in radio listening.
88.9 WERS (Emerson College):
Branded as “Boston’s uncommon radio,” WERS proves that uncommon doesn’t necessarily equate to good. The station is highlighted by pop-soul slop trying to sound like Lake Street Dive and St. Paul & The Broken Bones (not very mighty idols). And, a further personal pet peeve this station elicits is non-related transitions that feature singers of bands whose music doesn’t play after. 88.9 isn’t all bad, though, despite our complaints. They were ahead of the game on artists like Clairo and Wet Leg, and “standing room only”: Emerson’s weekend morning show is the only all-musical-theater radio hour in the country, and a staple of our childhoods.
91.5 WMFO (Tufts University):
WMFO is these writers’ personal favorite college radio station in Boston. A perplexing yet well-executed blend of virtually every genre, WMFO provides an exciting listening experience for any car ride. Although it’s hit or miss on occasion, going from samba to techno in a matter of minutes or even listening to cringe-worthy alt hits from the early 2010s makes 91.5 worth tuning in for. The best experience we’ve ever had driving was getting in the car with my parents after a tiring day and tuning to 91.5 just in time to hear the beat drop of LCD Soundsystem’s “Dance Yrself Clean.”
88.1 WMBR (MIT):
It was a delightful surprise to turn on 88.1 Massachusetts Institute of Technology radio and hear Bell Biv Devoe. It was even more of a delight to hear the radio jockey exclaim that he considers himself a “flavorful guy!” Almost every time we have tuned into 88.1, we have been blessed with R&B and alternative throwback bangers, with the occasional smooth jazz segment. This was not something we predicted the nerds at MIT would be on, so shout out to them for breaking the stereotype. One external complaint we have is that their website is beyond terrible. It’s ancient and impossible to use, and not what we’d expect from an esteemed institution.
95.3 WHRB (Harvard):
Oh, WHRB, ye of so much potential, yet so little execution. One of these writers has been to WHRB headquarters many times, and it oozes cool; however, when you tune your dial to 95.3, the majority of what you’ll hear is classical symphonies, church services, or, if you’re lucky, the super awesome programming of Rindge’s very own Falcon Frequency. The lack of variety, mostly ranging within the instrumental sphere, can at times be disappointing, but the fact that 95.3 proudly sticks to what it does well is worthy of praise. When 88.9 is playing millennial-core and 91.5 is out of range, you can rely on 95.3 for easy listening.
This article also appears in our February 2026 print edition.
