u/KetchupOnNipples

Stuck trying to break out of a sector, looking for outside perspective.

10 years as a systems engineer, all of it in defense adjacent work (Air Force, then two defense contractors, one stint at a medical device company in between). Trying to move into commercial tech, space, or general enterprise roles. Resume has been rewritten specifically to read commercial, no jargon, no program names, nothing that flags the industry.

Applying broadly, roles that genuinely fit the background. Result so far is basically nothing from the sectors I actually want, and steady interest from more defense companies, most of it lowball offers. Feels like I'm typecast by something other than the resume content itself, maybe the employer names, maybe just how the market's treating anyone with a defense background right now.

Anyone dealt with this kind of sector typecasting where the resume itself doesn't say what industry you're from but you still only get pulled back into it? What actually worked to break the pattern, networking in instead of applying cold, a portfolio or side project that proved range, or just grinding through a longer timeline than expected?

Anyone here successfully moved from defense systems engineering into commercial tech or space? Trying to figure out what I'm missing.

Background is 10 years in systems engineering, Air Force, then Northrop Grumman, then GE Healthcare, currently at a defense contractor. I've stripped every bit of defense language off my resume. No program names, no military acronyms, no mission coded terms, nothing. Bullets read as pure enterprise systems work, architecture, requirements management, cross functional delivery, translated into normal commercial language on purpose.

It hasn't mattered. I'm still only getting inbound from defense recruiters, most of them lowballing on comp. Enterprise tech and commercial space aren't biting even when the resume in front of them doesn't say defense anywhere on it.

My guess at this point is that it's not actually the bullet language doing the damage, it's the employer names themselves. Four employers in a row where two are literally named defense primes probably tells an ATS or a recruiter everything it needs to know regardless of how the work is described underneath. Curious if that tracks with anyone else's experience, or if there's something else going on I'm not seeing. Did networking end up mattering more than the resume for anyone who actually made this jump?

I know its overkill for my line of work, but I do like having a visual (fun) portfolio I can attach with my applications and to have on linkedin. This is first time I made something like this and it took a while to get it where it is now with the vibe and with formatting.

I plan to make one for my photography and cinematography when I have enough content to make me want to build one, but this resume portfolio was good practice on prompts, reading into code, finding bugs in VS Code and trying to fix it by understanding what it means

I know there are people in here that prob hate AI or vibe coding but it does help me learn while also being able to use it to help me get my thoughts out on what I want visually. Again any feedback from anyone who is better at AI or just good at building sites from the dome id love to have!

https://senseinate.github.io/

I'm a systems engineer and project manager, not a designer and not a software engineer. I know basic Python and leaned hard on AI-assisted coding to build this. The plan is to taper off that reliance as I actually learn more, this is part of how I'm learning. Built it over the past few weeks mostly to have something more visual to send alongside a resume when it's useful. I don't strictly need a portfolio site in my line of work, but I wanted a backup that shows more than a PDF can.

https://senseinate.github.io/

Three things I actually want feedback on:

1. Animations and interactions. Anything that feels clunky, laggy, or unnecessary. Also open to ideas for what else could make it feel more alive without turning into a gimmick.
2. I was going for a liquid glass/2000's styling, I feel like its not there, but still looks "Clean" for its purpose
3. The About section. Does it read like a real person or like resume language dressed up. I've rewritten it once already because the first version sounded stale.
4. Whether the order of information makes sense. What makes you want to keep scrolling, and where you'd stop.

Brutally honest feedback wanted. I can take it.

Like the title says I have a final interview in person soon for SE position in Huntsville. Words of advice or hype up? I’m stoked and I think I’ll kill it with team fit and knowledge tests. Did some digging on the people I’m meeting with on LinkedIn and surprisingly most have same backgrounds in this niche nuclear program I’m currently on and last person lived where my family lives and went to my fav college so that will be a cool talking point. Just not sure what to expect lol

Been in SE about 10 years, defense, medical devices, enterprise tech. TS clearance, MBSE, CAMEO, IBM DOORS, the whole stack. Also have PM and product experience layered on top which is either a flex or the reason I feel like I don’t fully belong anywhere lol.

I’m a grey badge contractor which means I have zero org chart authority over literally anyone. Everything I get done runs through relationships, trust, and somehow convincing rooms full of people who don’t want to agree on anything to actually move in the same direction. Chaired 20+ TRBs across military, federal civilians, and subcontractors in classified environments. Got a corporate award at one gig and four consecutive innovation awards in 12 months at my current one. None of it came from authority, just from being a people person in a field that is not exactly known for those. I got into engineering because I wanted to actually solve hard problems, not facilitate other people solving them while I manage the paperwork trail. The pay keeps me here but it’s not enough anymore.

Also noticing the SE and SWE lines are blurring hard. Digital engineering, data pipelines, cloud stuff showing up in every SE job description now. I’ve been building AI tools on the side which scratches the itch more than my actual job does if I’m being honest.

But I’m burnt out on the work itself. Defense SE at the program governance level is just not stimulating. It’s important but nothing about it makes me want to dig in. I want exciting work. Work where I’m actually connecting dots, finding things that aren’t obvious, solving something with real stakes.

I’ve always been drawn to crime and investigation type work. Not as a cop or fed, that’s not happening (I refuse to work those routes). But corporate crime, internal investigations, fraud analysis, financial crimes, cybercrime adjacent roles where my clearance and technical background might actually be useful. Has anyone made that kind of pivot from a technical background? What does that path actually look like?

Has anyone with SE, TPM, or PM experience successfully moved into something that uses those skills but actually feels engaging? I can do program management, product strategy, requirements work, stakeholder alignment across huge orgs, and I’m building AI fluency on top of that. Where does that combination actually pay well and not feel like you’re slowly going through the motions?

And for anyone who got out of defense specifically, did the grass actually turn out to be greener or did you just trade one flavor of soul crushing for another?

Just want feedback experiences from people who have actually made moves like this.

Been in SE about 10 years, defense, medical devices, enterprise tech. TS clearance, MBSE, CAMEO, IBM DOORS, the whole stack. Also have PM and product experience layered on top which is either a flex or the reason I feel like I don’t fully belong anywhere lol.

Here’s my situation. I’m a grey badge contractor which means I have zero org chart authority over literally anyone. Everything I get done runs through relationships, trust, and somehow convincing rooms full of people who don’t want to agree on anything to actually move in the same direction. Chaired 20+ TRBs across military, federal civilians, and subcontractors in classified environments. Got a corporate award at one gig and four consecutive innovation awards in 12 months at my current one. None of it came from authority, just from being a people person in a field that is not exactly known for those. I got into engineering because I wanted to actually solve hard problems, not facilitate other people solving them while I manage the paperwork trail. The pay keeps me here but it’s not enough anymore.

Also noticing the SE and SWE lines are blurring hard. Digital engineering, data pipelines, cloud stuff showing up in every SE job description now. I’ve been building AI tools on the side which scratches the itch more than my actual job does if I’m being honest.

What skills outside of MBSE are actually becoming non-negotiable right now? Cloud, digital twins, simulation environments, data pipelines? Where should I be putting time?

Has anyone gotten out of SE entirely and used those same skills somewhere that actually felt stimulating? Not just a different SE job, actually out. What did that look like?

Is defense SE uniquely soul crushing or is this everywhere? Medical device SE was at least tangible even if I spent half my time hand holding consultants who should have known better. Defense governance work just feels like requirements shuffling with extra classification markings.

I am just trying to figure out if there’s a version of this career that doesn’t feel like I’m slowly dying inside.

Being interviewed and things are going great so far, what is the company like for those whom worked there or currently work there (Huntsville AL location)

I would be under the Systems Engineering job function

Genuinely asking because I have been stuck on this for a while and I think I finally have the right words for it.

I got out of the Air Force after years working munitions systems. Not a software guy, not a traditional engineer, just someone who knew how to manage complex systems, people, and high stakes environments. Somehow that was enough to land a systems engineering role in defense and I worked hard, figured it out, and kept moving.

Now I have 10+ years across the Air Force, defense contracting, and medical devices. MBSE, CAMEO, DOORS, ICBM ground systems, nuclear surety, clinical V&V on medical imaging hardware. I have been the primary government POC on a multi-org defense program spanning primes, national labs, and Space Force installations. I ran end to end systems engineering on a surgical imaging feature from FMEA through clinical testing to field release at GE.

Now I am stuck in Utah and I still hate the field. The government customer dynamic, the tribal knowledge, the bureaucracy. I am done with it. But I have a family, a mortgage, real financial obligations. I cannot go backwards on pay and I am not willing to try.

The problem is my title history says systems engineer across the board even when the actual job was closer to program ownership and delivery leadership. Every time I apply to TPM, product, or something more senior I either get screened out or pulled back into SE.

Two things I am actually trying to figure out:

1. How did you break out of the SE title box into TPM, product, or anything else more lucrative? Internal move, targeted search, certifications, just applying aggressively? What actually worked?

2. For anyone who came out of DoD or defense contracting and got out for real, how did you do it? Not just rewording your resume. I want to land somewhere new and actually belong there on day one, not show up and fake it.

Bonus if you share what sector you landed in and whether it was worth it.

Looking forward to any feedback or stories.

I’m kind of curious to see how this would go, I just saw it this morning just browsing through. I don’t usually use Robinhood, but I’m kind of interested to see what type of shit can be plugged into the trading agent.

This is something I’ve been definitely trying to look at doing for a long time. Maybe this is my excuse to pull a trigger for some trade testing.

I have not traded in over a year since my last fuck up on my funded account.

I feel refreshed, have different life perspectives and most importantly, I cant remember most habits/skills I formed when I started because they were ASS.

I want to slowly come back but my main issue is, with the time I've been gone, there are even more Gurus out there (besides ICT and TJR and whom ever else) and I will not fall down that path again.

So I am here asking, what is the best route to re-learn besides watching the charts, to learn what I need to look at? I need to blend my TA with FA, I dont need complexity. I want to read publications and find actual content that will help me learn what I need about the futures markets to before trading real money again. I will have to find what I like and don't like to trade when I'm doing it rather than follow everyone else.

I'm in such a better mental state than I was and I think this will help a ton when doing the work this time, and not falling into the BS Retail trader trap like I started in during 2019.

Any recs on NON Guru people?

I am unsure anymore if my resume is "decent" or not, I tried to keep formatting simple, this is one of 5 general resumes I have based on the track I'm targeting (My OG Resume if you will).

I am targeting various roles like TPM/Non-TPM, Operations Management, Product Management (all have targeted general resumes with language that support the roles based off experience)

I am trying to get out the gov contracting space (and engineering lol) if I can since I've been basically DoD my whole career, I am looking into Tech/Fin Tech, Space Programs, Gaming Socials.

I am looking for remote first to give flexibility for moving to my forever place with family, but I'm also looking into relocation (Oregon, Tennessee, Huntsville AL, possibly even overseas) but I'm open

Currently I am a Project Manager 2 (per HR) but I also do a lot of Systems Engineering/Test/Integration work as well. Job hunting always has been hard and its getting harder, I don't think I need to explain that on reddit, we all know.

I want other sets of eyes on it, because obviously to me I think each resume I make is better than my last and its the best, but maybe that's why I'm getting rejections left and right even with tailoring to JD's (not just surface level key words)

Any help or feedback will be amazing, I thank everyone!

Note: I do know maybe the bold is too much and distracting, that I will work on, I try to get recruiter/HM to skim for what they want to see in the few seconds I have it it makes it past ATS)

https://preview.redd.it/5nwp9ocg9p3h1.png?width=1476&format=png&auto=webp&s=301cce307d07199f50c446bb11e409200bfae46b

I have a 2026 RS3 with 3400 miles on it, I’m not sure if this happens to anybody else, but even when I first got the car brand new the brakes would already sound like it has like some brake dust or something going on when I slow down to a stop.

It’s honestly very annoying and embarrassing whenever I’m rolling to a stop and it’s like the loud screech noise. I’m just not sure if this is something that should be happening already or if this is like a normal thing with these cars since the brakes are so huge. Either way I keep it clean all the time, so it’s not like I just let the wheels and brakes get dirty for weeks on end.