A law student, a history student and three teachers, it sounds like the naming of members of an academic society. In fact, these are five delegates for this year's Miss Guyana/Universe pageant, who all love challenges and seem to have no particular weaknesses.

This is 20-year-old Angelica Fredricks' second go at the crown and she feels she has a better shot this time around as in 2001 she went for the fun but now she is serious.

She was a teacher for three years before enrolling at the Cyril Potter College of Education (CPCE) majoring in Home Economics; fittingly her platform is Promoting Literacy in Guyana.

The Miss Bartica Regatta is being sponsored for this pageant by Dynamic Engineering.

She said that she decided to enter the pageant because she missed the "rush, the adrenaline..."

Fredricks said she finds the training difficult but noted that good things come through hard work and the other contestants gave her the will to go on. She feels that she will win the crown if she works hard enough adding, that whatever God has planned will happen.

The 5' 4" beauty likes meeting people and dancing and said she is always herself and never pretends.

Nineteen-year-old Moleeva Stanley hails from Onverwagt Village, West Coast Berbice and her platform is Gender Equality.

This somewhat petite young woman said that her intuition convinced her to enter the pageant and also because she loves challenges as they make her stronger and build her self-esteem.

She is a second year student at CPCE studying Industrial Arts and she loves meeting new and interesting people and designing buildings. She laughingly adds that she has never done any professional designing but has done some sketches using her "God-given talent."

She was once the second runner-up in the Miss New Amsterdam Multilateral School pageant and the first runner-up in the Miss West Coast Berbice pageant.

Stanley said she finds the training a lot of hard work, but also fun and she is happy that she has been able to meet fellow contestants Olive Gopaul and Odessa Phillips, two former Miss Guyana/World queens whom she has always admired on television.

The beautiful Fonseca Peters, 21, hails from Lamaha Springs, which is the Joint Services Scheme in North Ruimveldt.

Her platform is Tropical Rain Forests and she is sponsored by Short's Construction.

She is a first year law student at The International University and loves reading, meeting interesting people and spending quality time with her family.

This is her first pageant, but friends and relatives have been at her for some time to enter.

While it is challenging, she feels knowing what you want and working for it is what matters as one will get what they work for.

She does not feel that there is any outstanding quality that will give her the edge over the other girls, but believes that how delegates perform in any given segment will make them win. She has a working relationship with the other delegates. Peters would like to see everyone given a fair chance in life, to eat and live comfortably.

The first thing one would notice about Eleetha Stewart is her height, 5'11", but this does not bother the 18-year-old from Plaisance, East Coast Demerara.

The reigning Miss Jam Zone's platform is the Importance of Supporting our Local Industries and she is sponsored by Fusion International.

Miss Jam Zone was actually a gateway for Stewart to the Miss Guyana/Universe pageant since she used it to get the training she needed to be able to compete effectively in the national pageant. Miss Jam Zone, she said was very similar to Miss Guyana/Universe except for the gym. The training at times could be difficult, however, at other times she enjoys it.

Although 22 beautiful ladies surround her she feels that the challenge of it all will give her the opportunity to represent Guyana on the international stage.

She is a first year History student at the University of Guyana and describes herself as being lovable, determined and kind- hearted. Her pet peeve is dishonest people.

Should she win she will use the title to promote her platform. She is confident that she can win because, "I will put my best foot forward."

Nineteen-year-old Karen Duke appears to be a quiet young woman, but, one should not be fooled because they should know that this beauty is a force to be reckoned with.

From the village of Bagotsville and an only child for her mother, Duke says her platform is the Importance of a Nuclear Family. She grew up in a single parent home and knows the disadvantage of not having both parents around.

She is sponsored by Horizontal Electrical; and was crowned Miss West Bank Teen in 2002.

Duke said she always had the desire to enter the Miss Guyana/Universe Pageant since she loves challenges. She teaches at the La Grange Primary School and hopes to one day become a lawyer.