Finding a career can follow a simple enough formula, Leake County high school seniors were told Tuesday. Dr. Frances Lucas-Tauchar, president of Millsaps College, addressed scores of the county's top seniors during the Career-for-a-Day luncheon at the Mississippi National Guard Armory on Highway 16E.

In the annual running of the program by the Leake County Chamber of Commerce, high school seniors who qualified for the program spent the morning testing the waters of possible career choices. Students were hosted by professionals in careers of the youths' choices, seeing something of what is required of the work. The program wrapped up with a luncheon at the Armory.

Lucas-Tauchar, who in July was named the first woman president of the Methodist college in Jackson, was keynote speaker. She led off by giving pointers on selected careers and followed with pointers on selecting a college. In choosing a career, Lucas-Tauchar said, students should ask themselves three key questions.

The first question, she said, was, "What do you like to do?" Emphasizing that the question hinged on activities "you can tell your mother about," she said it was important to like your work.

Then, she said, students should ask, "What are you good at doing?" That would bring to light skills and abilities. "If you're here, you're gifted," she told the gathering, "and talented. You've already made the cut." She expressed concern that many of the younger generations "don't feel they're very valuable." She urged to the students to "affirm" to themselves their value and then to "affirm each other."

Finally, she said, the last question is "What needs to be done?" A career involving services or skills in high demand offers greater chances of sucess. "When you ask yourself those questions, and you put them all together," she offered, "you have your career choices."

But it will require work, she emphasized. "The 40-hour work week is a myth for those with serious careers," Lucas-Tauchar said. That being the case, she added, the students should choose a career that makes them happy. "If you devote that much of your life to something," she said, "you better by golly like it."

Lucas-Tauchar also offered tips on selecting a college. Points to consider, she said, included finding "a place with classes that are small. Classroom size makes a huge difference." Students should look to see what happens to graduates of a given school after they finish, how successful they are in landing a job or advancing their education. Lucas-Tauchar said students needed to see how easy it is to be involved on campus, studying the numbers of clubs and activities that were offered. And finally, she said, students needed to check out the campus enviroment, "walk around and find out if you fit."