Some universities have student leaders who are chosen by other students to perform important

duties at the school (for example, meeting with school administrators to discuss problems at the
school). If your university requires you to choose student leaders, which one of the following
do you believe is the best way for you to inform yourself about whom to choose?
--Reading articles in the school newspaper about the views of each person who wants to be a
student leader;
--Listening to what each person who wants to be a student leader says about important issues (for
example, in speeches or interviews);
--Getting recommendations from the teachers of each person who wants to be a student leader.

Student leaders play a vital role in the smooth functioning of a university. Therefore, choosing the
right leaders is closely related to every student’s interest, as they are a bridge connecting students
with school administrators. Among the following three ways to know some potential student
leaders, namely, reading articles about their views in school newspaper, listening to their speeches
or interviews, or getting recommendations from their teachers, as far as I am concerned, speeches
and interviews are the most reliable sources for forming comprehensive impressions on them.

To begin with, speeches and interviews can bring out the most truthful perspectives from the
potential candidates for a student leader. Public speaking, whether it is a 100-audience occasion or
simply a one-on-one session, in its essence is an impromptu activity in which the speakers share
their original and genuine thoughts on the topics they are asked to address. They don’t have much
time to prepare as the questions appearing in interviews or the Q&A sessions after speeches are
mostly unpredictable, which requires the speaker to think and speak on their feet and everything
they express is conceived on the spot. On the contrary, both the articles in the school newspaper
and the recommendations from teachers are the products of fine beating and grinding. Beautiful
and polished as they may look, neither newspaper articles nor recommendation letters are
composed right there and then. Most of time, team work is involved in the designing, crafting and
fine tuning of a newspaper article, thus the views of the candidates may not be completely theirs.
Moreover, recommendation letters from teachers are always filled up with praises and
compliments which can hardly be completely objective since too much personal emotions are
attached. In short, comparing to articles and recommendations in which external contributors may
get involved, speeches and interviews honestly reflect the true opinions of candidates for student
leader.

What’s more, the ability to communicate clearly and powerfully is one of the essential abilities of
a capable student leader, which could be demonstrated in a speech or interview. As a bridge
between the students and administrators, a student leader often needs to speak to the teachers,
faculties and even presidents on behalf of all students. The quality of his or her speech may make
a difference between getting the financial aid or getting nothing for student clubs, acquiring the
approval or rejection for holding a student concert, upgrading the dorm room condition or keeping
the status quo. Consequently, speeches or interviews are perfect chances for fellow students to tell
whether the candidates have the necessary skills of public speaking. If the candidate can’t
convince or inspire an ordinary student, he or she is unlikely to influence the decision of an
administrator. In contrast, both the newspaper articles and teachers’ recommendation letters are in
written form, no way can the readers tell whether the author is a good speaker. The sound logic
and well composed phrases don’t necessarily mean the author won’t get a stage fright and begin to
stutter when facing with a live audience. Therefore, the speeches and interviews are the best
indicator of candidate’s speaking skill, as the engaging content and smooth delivery can always
display how much influence a potential leader has.

In conclusion, speeches and interviews of potential candidates best reflect their thoughts and
opinions without mixing in perspectives from others’. Also, their ways of speaking faithfully
demonstrate how good a speaker they are, which plays a vital role in their future success as a
leader. That’s why speeches and interviews of candidates is the best way for students to get to
know their future leaders.