While many college students spend their summers focused on internships, Camryn Weldon is balancing an internship at Leidos with the demands of Division I volleyball. The George Mason setter is spending her summer preparing for the upcoming season while gaining valuable experience in business development.

"I spent my summer here last summer as a business development intern, so basically helping the business secure their current contracts and then also allowing them to grow and expand into other areas," Weldon said. "I'm back this year supporting federal financials—basically the pursuit of business in federal financial agencies, so like FTC, Treasury, etc."

With a concentration in finance, Weldon has found that her coursework directly supports her professional ambitions.

"I'm a business major and my concentration is finance," she said. "[This internship has] been a really good exposure, and it's allowed me to kind of understand what it actually looks like because it's easy to get your degree and think that you're going to be interested in something, and then it's a whole another thing to be doing it every day and know what you want in a career."

Weldon credits her experience as a student-athlete for helping her excel in the professional world. The confidence she's built on the court translates seamlessly into the workplace.

"I think being able to feel comfortable speaking to people in positions of power is a really valuable skill […Interns are usually] pretty scared to talk to people, but I've had to talk to adults on the phone since I was getting recruited in high school," she said.

"I've gotten great feedback from my manager. He's told me that he can tell I'm a natural leader […] Being put in positions of leadership in my internship because of my past experience [as a student-athlete and previous summer intern] allows me to feel comfortable enough to let my leadership skills show."

Her competitive drive also finds a home in business development. "Business development is competitive and you're always working against other government contractors, so it's a competitive environment—which is nothing new to me," Weldon said.

Her academic background has enhanced her understanding of the technical side of the business. "Last summer I didn't really understand what all of the different aspects of IT services meant," she said. "[But this past year] one of my operations courses talked a lot about IT infrastructure and how all that stuff works, and so that really prepared me to understand the types of services Leidos provides."

Even while interning, Weldon remains committed to volleyball—though this summer has come with its own set of challenges. "I would say that's the most difficult part of having an internship is figuring out how to do it all because you can't really do it all," she said. "I'm definitely working to stay in shape, going to PT when I can and staying mobile, stretching, and just doing our workouts that [Dr. Faith Brown] gives us are really good and important."

As she heads into another year balancing athletics and work, Weldon is optimistic about her future in both arenas. "I'm looking to get a job here after graduation," she said. "I'm not exactly sure in what area of the business, but I think it's been a really good exposure, and it's allowed me understand what my career could look like."

Whether she's leading on the court or in the conference room, Weldon continues to prove that the skills she's developed as a student-athlete are preparing her for whatever comes nex