1. Draw up some realistic campaign objectives

Try to think about the time and resources available to you and work out how to make the best use of them. Don't aim too low with your goals for the year, as folk might think you're not going to make any kind of impact during your year in office. Likewise, there's no point in saying that you're going to get the moon on a stick for your students if there's only a gnat's chance of it ever happening while you're in office! As it says on the tin - be realistic with your campaign objectives!

2. Use publicity, don't abuse it

Make sure it's clear, eye-catching and as simple as possible. Try not to say too much on posters, and use leaflets for more detail (it is sometimes useful to include your manifesto on these). Think carefully about what kind of promotional material you might need - posters, leaflets, t-shirts, e-mails, web space - it's up to you, but you can't have it all! There's only a modest budget available from UHISA to spend on your campaign and there are some restrictions on the number of e-mails you can send and the amount of web space you can use.

3. Get in touch with a current UHISA rep

Find out about the position you are standing for by getting in touch with the person that already does the job (yes, it's that simple). If you find that there hasn't been a student from your college who has taken up that role recently then you might want to talk to another current college rep instead to get some inside info on what the experience was like. Bear in mind that there is quite a bit of difference between the UHI colleges, so student body size/demographic, geography of local area, level of student engagement, range of subject areas, variety of issues facing students, level of staff support, etc, etc, might not be the same for you as it is for the current rep(s).

4. Use a theme for the election and 'brand' yourself

Think of a good slogan or catchphrase, but please do not breach copyright laws! It's useful (and downright entertaining, we think) to create yourself a 'brand', so that your name and manifesto imprints itself in the mind of the student body: to do this, think about the initials of your name; whether your own name or college name sounds like something interesting or relevant; whether there's a song/rhyme you could refer to; or what it is that you stand for in these elections, for example. There are endless possibilities, but don't spend too long at it - you've got campaigning to do!

5. Talk to students

The most effective way of getting people to vote is to speak to them individually. Go round your canteen or social area, for example, approaching people to get their view on the kinds of issues affecting students. Inform them of the elections (if they've been living on another planet for a few weeks and don't know about them already) and then let them know a bit about what post you're standing for and why. If they're not interested in the elections then at least you'll get to know more about the student perspective for when you get into office. You should have a sore throat by the end of the election!