It’s less than a week away from what pundits call, like they do every four years, one of the most important elections in U.S. history. From policy differences to possibly making history, see how Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump stack up against each other.

Clinton will make history if she is elected president on Nov. 8, as no woman has ever served as president of the United States.

“It would be similar to Barack Obama being elected as the first African-American president,” co-director for the Center for Gender in Global Context Stephanie Nawyn said.

Clinton has already broken one glass ceiling because she is the first woman to be nominated for one of the two major political parties. If she wins the election, she will break another glass ceiling, Nawyn said.

“The glass ceiling is this theory that there are invisible barriers keeping women from advancing through the highest levels of any particular organization,” Nawyn said. “The idea of going beyond that barrier and getting to those high levels is called breaking the glass ceiling.”

If Clinton breaks the glass ceiling, it is unlikely to cause economic changes, economics professor Charles Ballard said.

“I don’t think her breaking the glass ceiling would cause an economic growth or a recession or anything like that,” Ballard said.

Electing Clinton would be an iconic moment, MSU College Democrats President Daniel Eggerding said.

“I think electing the first female president of the United States would be one of the most iconic moments in U.S. history, not only because it’s happening right now with Hillary, but (because of) the fact that it’s happening right after the election of the first black president in U.S. history,” Eggerding said. “That just makes it all the more iconic.”

The representation of women in high political positions is low, Nawyn said.

“Some girls don’t think of themselves growing up to be in politics because they don’t see adult women in politics,” Nawyn said. “If they see a woman become president, it gives them the sense that this is possible. It opens up new avenues for what is possible. In terms of its symbolism, it’s huge.”

Chair of the MSU College Republicans Jeff Litten disagrees.

“I personally don’t see a difference between a female and a male president,” Litten said. “I don’t think the gender of a president dictates who is the president and how they’re respected.”

Electing Trump could be good for the economy, Litten said.

“I think right now ... the economy is on a steady, very small (upward trend), but not at the rate it has in the past,” Litten said. “(Trump) can make businesses flourish, provide the jobs and make our economy start to grow rapidly again.”

Being president is not the same as being a businessman, Ballard said.

“I think that it’s often possible for people in the business community to think that their experience in business will translate easily into success in public office, and it doesn’t always work that way,” Ballard said.

However, a lot of experience in politics does not necessarily translate to being a good president.

“(James Buchanan was in a) cabinet, secretary of state, ambassador, all this other stuff ... (and he) may well be the worst president ever, even though he had all this experience,” Ballard said.

Clinton and Trump have extremely different policies they plan to implement if they are elected.

Economy and college debt

According to Trump’s website, he plans to create 25 million jobs through the course of 10 years by increasing GDP growth.

“(Trump’s economy and energy plans) are just designed to get America back to work, keep energy prices low and bring back prosperity to this country,” state director of the Michigan Trump campaign Scott Hagerstrom said.

Trump will cap college loan payments at 12.5 percent of incomes and there will be loan forgiveness after 15 years of payments, Hagerstrom said.

Clinton has a plan that within in her first 100 days in office, she will invest in infrastructure, manufacturing, small business, clean energy and research and technology.

Her website also says she will make debt-free college possible for all Americans and allow people with loans to refinance them.

The Michigan Clinton campaign refused to comment.

Healthcare

According to a The State News article, Trump will repeal the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, if he is elected, and implement Health Savings Accounts.

“We know we definitely need changes: introduce more marketplace options, healthcare savings accounts, the ability to purchase health insurance across state lines,” Hagerstrom said. “When you introduce competition into a system, you come out with a low cost and better quality product.”

Trump plans to keep Medicare and Medicaid, but he will allow states to manage Medicaid through block-grants, Hagerstrom said.

“Each state will be able to create a system that best suits the needs of their state and when you do something like that, what it does is it allows the states to be innovative and creative,” Hagerstrom said.

According to Clinton’s website, she will expand Obamacare and make healthcare affordable for more people and reduce the cost of prescription drugs and out-of-pocket costs such as copays and deductibles.

Clinton will also protect access to reproductive health care, including contraceptives and abortions.

National Defense

Trump will increase the number of soldiers in the U.S. Army, increase the number of ships in the U.S. Navy, increase the number of aircrafts in the U.S. Air Force and increase the number of battalions in the U.S. Marine Corps, according to his website.

“We’re not going to be building weapons just because it brings jobs to a particular congressman’s district,” Hagerstrom said. “(We’re going to do) what helps us build a military and defend our country.”

Clinton plans to strengthen relationships with key allies across the world. She will also invest in American infrastructure, education and innovation.

Energy

According to Trump’s website, he will make American energy independent and use America’s untouched shale, oil and natural gas reserves in order to stop imports of energy from hostile nations and the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, or OPEC, cartels.

“We won’t have to depend on countries that hate us for our oil supplies,” Hagerstrom said. “There’s no plan to subsidize any of (the clean energy), but there’s no plans to take the owner’s regulations off so that those forms of energy can be used.”

If Clinton takes office, she plans to install 500 million solar panels before the end of her first term. She will also defend and extend the smart pollution plans and efficiency standards, according to her website.

She also plans to, within 10 years, expand clean energy production on public land and water, cut energy waste by a third in America and power every house in America with renewable energy.

Tax Plan

Under Trump’s tax plan, everyone will receive tax cuts, with middle-class Americans experiencing the biggest reduction. However, he will make sure the rich pay their fair share, according to his website.

“(With Trump’s) tax cut plan, a middle class family with two children will get a 35 percent tax cut,” Hagerstrom said. “When (Ronald) Reagan cut tax rates, federal revenues went up.”

According to Clinton’s website, she will ensure middle-class Americans do not pay a higher tax rate than the wealthiest Americans by fighting for measures like the Buffett Rule. She will also tax companies who take their business outside of the U.S.

Immigration

According to Trump’s website, he has a 10-point plan to put America first. The first point is to build a wall along America’s southern border that Mexico will pay for.

“There are a few ways of paying for the wall,” Hagerstrom said. “One are tariffs if companies move jobs overseas. ... Another way is transfer payments that are made from our country to Mexico. Those can be taxed, and that tax can go to pay for the wall.”

Other points of Trump’s plan include ending catch-and-release, which means anyone who illegally enters the country will be held until they are sent back to the country they came from.

"(Trump has) made it very clear if someone wants to become a citizen of this country, they need to leave the country and get back in line with everybody else,” Hagerstrom said.

Clinton’s immigration reform policy will treat all immigrants with dignity, according to her website. She claims she will enforced immigration law in a humane way. Immigrants who pose a threat to public safety will be deported, while refugees seeking asylum will be given a chance to tell their story.

Clinton will also create the Office of Immigrant Affairs to help immigrants with integration.

Election Day is Nov. 8. There are multiple polling locations on and around campus. Go out and vote.