u/TCPisSynSynAckAck

Title: Security Engineer II —> Linux Admin II

Pay: 101k —> 97k

401k Match: 4% —> 10%

WFH: Fully in Office —> 2 Days Hybrid

PTO: 3 Weeks —> 5 Weeks + Volunteer Days

Parental Leave: 1 Week —> 8 Weeks

HSA Match: $750 —> $2000

Currently doing GRC, policy and auditing, moving updates around for engineering, vulnerability scans, and SIEM building/rules, little bit of everything. Before this I was a Linux Administrator. My current job is okay, but little to no room to move up at all. The new company however… they’re a local branch with national locations and deep pockets from their government affiliation… so their benefits are top tier as you can see so it’s technically a step up in pay via benefits. I MIGHT be able to talk them up to $100k.

BUT The work environment I have now is SUPER relaxed… almost too relaxed and I could literally show up and do nothing all day and they wouldn’t know. I can work on whatever I want to work on… it’s a military environment and this new one is slightly a mix between public/private sector because it’s a federal financial institution so guessing it’s semi-relaxed which I think might be good for me because
I’ve only been in IT for 4 years now and I want something more fast paced…

I have only worked at a Microsoft Data Center (more blue collar) and a military unit as a contractor (doing SysAd, LinuxAd, Sec Engineering). I have my Bachelors in IT and Masters in Cybersecurity.

My path to security:

Data Center Technician —> NOC Technician —> System Admin —> Linux Admin —> Information Assurance Engineer (since November)

Now I’m very blue team and I like it, with some GRC. Small federal/military shop and I wear a lot of hats. Policy writing, authoring test results, creating SIEM rules, vulnerability scanning, writing tickets, reviewing software, change control. $100k a year in the Midwest, it’s a good gig but I want better.

Again, it’s a decent job but I just finished my cybersecurity Masters at WGU and I’m studying for CISM. I want the $115-125k and to be more specialized and be more obsessed with what I’m doing. I also would like hybrid/remote instead of 100% in office. I’m open to learning how to code python, I’m open to diving deeper in to SIEM/SOAR automation, I just don’t know where to go from here. Anyone else feel this way like they don’t know where to go and how to be more marketable?

Like the title says. I’ve heard of keto guys drinking avocado oil in their water bottles and MCT oil in the morning during rides, etc.

Do you bring meal prepped meat with you? Beef sticks? How many? lol … What kind of electrolytes do you bring?

My whole 5 story brick apartment building downtown was shaking… was that a large military airplane or something?

Just like 6-7 minute ago around 10:33pm

I applied for a Cyber Security Analyst 3 at a larger financial company that is based out of my city I live in. It was basically a threat intel analyst which is part of my job duties now.

* I tailor made the resume for this job, I had my premium Jobscan ai tool scan it and I manual tweaked every detail until it was perfect and had a 100 score (you get a free copy of it through WGU)

* I have every damn cert under the sun, A+, Net+, Azure, Sec+, Cloud+, PenTest+, ITIL 4, CySA+, SIEM certs, and even put CISM in Progress on there…

* I have a Bachelors in IT

* I have a Masters I just finished in Cybersecurity & Information Assurance

* I had a direct referral from the CISO. He sent a referral link that I used, and I put his name in the referral box too.

* Lastly… with the cherry on top… one of the new technicians I work with and who I train, and isn’t even old enough to drink yet, and only 2 years XP in IT got an HR phone interview a few days ago. He didn’t have a referral and his resume was not tailored for the job. He did submit though a week before me….

And anyway I got an auto denial email…

The only think I can think is that I’ve only had my Cybersecurity Engineer title (current job) for 6 months… before that I was still IT/Engineer work. You would think with a referral from the CISO I would at least get a phone call. I put $125k because the salary range was 110-132k listens and I checked “yes” when open to negotiation. Wow though. I will have to reach out to CISO friend and ask soon what happened but I’m sure it’s just some bureaucratic bs. It’s tough out there people.

I applied for a Cyber Security Analyst 3 at a larger financial company that is based out of my city I live in. It was basically a threat intel analyst which is part of my job duties now.

* I tailor made the resume for this job, I had my premium Jobscan ai tool scan it and I manual tweaked every detail until it was perfect and had a 100 score (you get a free copy of it through WGU)

* I have every damn cert under the sun, A+, Net+, Azure, Sec+, Cloud+, PenTest+, ITIL 4, CySA+, SIEM certs, and even put CISM in Progress on there…

* I have a Bachelors in IT

* I have a Masters I just finished in Cybersecurity & Information Assurance

* I had a direct referral from the CISO (the company is large enough that there is 2 of them). He sent a referral link that I used, and I put his name in the box.

* Lastly… with the cherry on top… one of the new technicians I work with and who I train, and isn’t even old enough to drink yet, and only 2 years XP in IT got an HR phone interview a few days ago. He didn’t have a referral and his resume was not tailored for the job. He did submit though a week before me….

And anyway I got an auto denial email…

The only think I can think is that I’ve only had my Cybersecurity Engineer title (current job) for 6 months… before that I was still IT/Engineer work. You would think with a referral from the CISO I would at least get a phone call. Wow. I will have to reach out to him and ask soon what happened but I’m sure it’s just some bureaucratic bs. It’s tough out there people.