The process of selecting college presidents is discussed. It is suggested that the selection is affected by the conflict between privacy and publicity, a balance that differs among different kinds of institutions: a relatively closed search because of religious affiliation or dogma for a private college versus the requirements established for state institutions operating under Sunshine Laws or Open Records Laws. Basic considerations are as follows: how the search is to be conducted (e.g., the number of candidates to be considered); the kind of qualities and background experiences desired for the president; inclusion of students on the search committees; the extent to which the spouse of the presidential candidate is considered; search committee members' tendency to avoid making a personal judgment about the candidate; the likelihood that the search committee will not select candidates who have gained the label "controversial"; the role of the incumbent president during the search; the role of the spouse of women college presidents; and distinguishing between issues that should be decided by full disclosure versus those that should be secret and confidential. Research on the selection of the college president conducted jointly by David Riesman and Judith McLaughlin is summarized. (SW)