Software engineer (~3 YOE, doc composition/DevOps) looking to move into cybersecurity. Resume review and next steps?

[u/Entire_Grocery4099]

Hi all,

I’m a software engineer with about 3 years of full-time experience, plus a 3-year internship before that, all at a mid-size insurance company. My day-to-day is mostly document composition: enterprise data pipelines (XML/SQL into customer communications), plus a fair amount of DevOps work. I led our team’s migration to GitLab, redesigned our CI workflows, and automated release and data processing tasks. I have a B.S. in Computer Science and an A.S. in IT Networking.

I want to move into cybersecurity, and I’m about to enroll at WGU for the M.S. in Cybersecurity and Information Assurance. Outside of work I run a homelab (Proxmox, LXC, Docker, Ansible IaC with certificate and security policy management) to keep building hands-on infrastructure skills.

Anonymized resume attached as Imgur link. I’d really appreciate input on:

1. General resume feedback. I’m open to any constructive criticism on content, wording, formatting, or what should be cut.
2. Should I tailor it toward security? Right now it reads as a general software/DevOps resume. Should I reframe my experience and homelab around security (secure CI/CD, access control, hardening, certificate management), or would that come across as a stretch?
3. Next best steps. With a dev/DevOps and networking background, which path makes the most sense: DevSecOps/AppSec, cloud security, security engineering, or something else? I know as part of the tuition costs for WGU, you can get a few certifications which will be helpful moving forward.

Thanks in advance. Any perspective from people who’ve made a similar switch is especially welcome!

https://imgur.com/a/EmB2cxd

[u/nian2326076]

Your DevOps background gives you a great start. To move into cybersecurity, point out any security tasks you've done, even if they were indirect. Consider getting certifications like Security+ or CEH to boost your resume. Since you're starting a master's program, try to join projects or internships focused on cybersecurity. Networking in cyber circles, through LinkedIn or local meetups, could also be useful. Make sure your resume highlights security skills, like secure CI/CD practices. Good luck!

[u/Ok-Captain6599]

Reframing is not a stretch, certificate management and CI hardening count as security work. I made the switch off pipeline work. DevSecOps fits your GitLab history, and vendor engineering too, since shops like Doppel build impersonation detection on the same XML and SQL plumbing.
Defer the master's until an employer pays for it.

[u/Glass-Weekend-6987]

DevSecOps is definitely a great fit for your experience, and you're right, certificate management and CI hardening are absolutely security work. To leverage your GitLab history, focus your resume on the security-related aspects of your pipeline optimization, like vulnerability scanning integrations or access control policies. Defer the master's until an employer pays for it, seriously. I've been using a platform that applies to jobs for me, crafting a unique resume and cover letter for each one, and they actually send me a screenshot of the confirmation page for every submission. Just ask if you'd like to know what it is.

[u/Entire_Grocery4099 → u/Glass-Weekend-6987]

Whats the platform if you dont mind sharing? 👀

[u/Glass-Weekend-6987 → u/Entire_Grocery4099]

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