"I was lucky to have experience in security early in my career,” Angela Cheng says. A double Hoya, Angela graduated from Georgetown with a bachelor’s degree in foreign service, focusing on international politics. Two of her professors introduced her to her first job at the defense contractor Scitor, which has since been acquired by Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC). There, she worked as a contractor for the Office of Net Assessment, specializing in the outer space domain and nuclear weapons.

A year after receiving her undergraduate degree, Angela decided to pursue a master’s degree in security studies. As a native New Yorker, she says the September 11 attacks drew her to the field of international relations and security. “In retrospect, the attacks shaped me to my core and got me to think through what it means to be secure,” she reflects.

Because she already had a good foundation in international relations from her undergraduate classes, Angela tried to take a variety of classes that may not have direct relevance to her career but were still interesting. Nevertheless, the core classes at SSP, especially Dr. David Edelstein’s “Theory and Practice of Security’ class, also helped her become a better student and professional. Angela had the impression that a career in academia implied being shut in an ivory tower reading books, but Dr. Edelstein showed her the importance of academic rigor, even as a practitioner. Many of her other classes were related to technology and security, which started as an area of interest for her during her undergraduate studies. “When we talk about components of strategy and competitive advantage, there is a lot in emerging technology that we need to understand,” she says. 

Outside of class, Angela found a good group of friends, some of whom were older, mid-career professionals. In one distinct memory during her time working part-time at The Tombs while waiting for her security clearance, she remembers serving bread pudding to her SSP friends while they were at the bar studying, before meeting up with them later for drinks after she got off her shift. For Angela, these specific moments exemplified her experience building these relationships at SSP.

Angela continued to work at Scitor for a couple of years after graduating from SSP before moving on to Boeing, where she currently works. Since then, her role with the company has evolved, with each position giving her the opportunity to work in a field relevant to national security while still remaining in the private sector. After starting with the defense strategy team, Angela later had a stint working on a joint venture with the Brazilian aerospace company Embraer and eventually reached her current position as a manager for strategic demonstrations. In this role, she helps execute and plan aerospace demonstrations that Boeing is involved with in conjunction with the U.S. military.

Angela finds that there is a greater mix of skill sets in the private sector. Her colleagues come from various backgrounds and levels of education and expertise, which brings unique perspectives when trying to understand the global picture. For her part, SSP helped Angela come up with big-picture ideas that have been instrumental in making decisions in her job. But she would like to see more SSPers consider a career in private industry. “There’s a lot of good work being done in government and the public policy sphere, but at the end of the day, private industries make the things that win and deter wars,” she says. “Even if you’re not an aerospace engineer or mechanic, you know your work contributes to the national security apparatus. There’s a lot of awesome stuff going on in the private sector!”

With this in mind, Angela advises future SSPers to keep their minds open and engage their curiosity instead of automatically shutting themselves out of certain opportunities. “In my experience, older students tended to have a broader mindset of what they wanted to accomplish, while younger ones had a narrower vision of what they wanted to do.” To that end, Angela finds networking to be a powerful tool when used correctly. “Don’t be afraid to reach out. There’s an understanding in DC that you should help those who come after you. I think SSP alumni always have the desire to give back.