Staff and faculty from the College and its graduate schools also met with Helman, Mandel and Diana Taylor '77, the search committee's vice chair, in two forums earlier on Thursday.
Taylor could not attend the student forum, which took place at 8:30 p.m., because of a prior commitment in New York, Helman said.
"The goal was to have open dialogue and a frank, candid discussion," Helman said in an interview with The Dartmouth. "It was a good step toward that."
Each forum was recorded, and the search committee will review the discussion in future meetings and sessions, Helman said in the interview.
During the discussion, several students said they would prefer a president who came to Dartmouth late in his or her career to a younger candidate who would be more likely to leave the position after a short amount of time.
"What's important to me is someone who's invested in not being a college president but in being Dartmouth's president," one student said.
Students disagreed on whether the candidate should engage with the community through attendance at student-run events.
One student said it was unnecessary for College President Jim Yong Kim to have tea with her a cappella group.
"Why is this the president's priority?" she said. "I don't think the president needs visual engagement. The engagement I want to see is someone who considers Dartmouth to be the pinnacle of his or her career."
A student who leads a minority student group on campus said that while former College President James Wright attended events that his group sponsored, Kim did not appear at such events. An ideal president, he said, would communicate directly with minority groups instead of delegating committees to them.
"Different people will engage in the community in different ways," Helman said. "It's hard to change someone's personality, but you can still try to get a sense of their interest in and commitment to the community."
An alumna attendee addressed the next president's need to be transparent.
"Students are no longer able to stay in the dark," she said. "It's a different generation."
Several students expressed interest in having an American president.
The differences between American and European educational systems could negatively impact an international president's ability to lead the College, a female international student said.
Others cited the need to have a president who had a connection with the College and an understanding of its history.
Several students said they want a president who will care for Dartmouth's staff and will improve the campus's intellectual communities.
Helman and Mandel discussed the process by which a candidate will be selected.
The 2008 search committee will serve as a model for this year's committee, whose members will be announced in the next 10 days, Helman said.
Although many student groups have asked for representation on the committee, the committee's size must be kept small to ensure confidentiality in the search process, Helman said. Helman has met with approximately 25 people from Brown University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, institutions that have searched for new presidents in the past five years, he said.
Between 400 and 500 candidates will likely express interest in the presidency, Helman said.
Helman acknowledged the forum's small size but emphasized the need to gather varied, diverse perspectives.
"It's hard to bring all of the points of view in," he said. "It's a sincere effort on our part to listen hard."
Students can submit additional feedback via email or through a confidential website, Helman said.
The search committee must seek new ways to engage with students, attendee Patricia Lee '12 said.
"It would be a shame if we were hearing the same voices over and over again," she said. "His promise to engage gives me hope. I hope students meet him halfway."
Adria Brown '15, who also attended the May 8 Student Assembly forum regarding the presidential search, said Thursday's discussion gave increased attention to student voices, which she said she appreciated.
