They might not have their fingers on nuclear triggers or even have the power to make multimillion pound contracts, but students' union presidents can have a real impact on college life.

For many students selecting union officers is the first tangible manifestation of democracy they will have met; and the chance to take part in the elections should not be passed up, even if the selection of candidates is less than awe-inspiring. In the good old days choosing your leader was easy: exaggerated versions of socialism, republicanism, conservativism and, if you were really lucky, monster-raving loonyism, were there for the taking.

Nowadays student politics mirror national politics: there's very little to distinguish one candidate from another. Unless your best mate is running - and often people will try to persuade you that they are your new best friend - how do you choose?

Campus Times turned to those who know best and asked five incumbent presidents what they would look for in a successor.

"They can all get up and say how they are going to lead the union, but you need the people that will back you up," says Trinity's Dave Tighe. "So it is important to have good interactive and listening skills." UCD union president Kevin McDonnell says that while listening is good, speaking is better. "Most of a president's time is spent in meetings and you need to know how to speak and how to get your point across."

Experience is another important factor. Most of those questioned agree with Michael Yeates of Athlone IT that "there is no point in coming in blind to what is going on. It's good to have been involved in clubs and societies and know what is going on with the union, management and other leaders."

Tighe, however, begs to disagree: "I was never involved in the union. You can do as good a job as an outsider and you aren't coming in with tainted views. You can learn the ropes fairly quickly."

Once in power, a major issue will be how a president conducts relations with college authorities. Gone are the days of mass occupations and marches. "You have to set aside time to read.