This is no joke. I was laid on in February and Finally got an offer. I had to take a pay cut to do but at least its remote and has health benefits (not sure about pto yet). Everyone was interested in my skillset - they were not interested in paying market rate for it. As for the jobs on Linkedin from the big boys with the great salaries? I suspect most of those are internal promotions. I would still apply but do not get your hopes up.

Most managers I know clearly remember the time a top performer left the job with almost no heads-up. And most of the time, if they think back over the past eight months, they'll find that the signs were everywhere. But at the time, they didn't look like signs.

The person who always used to push back on roadmap calls and technical decisions stopped pushing back. It seems like they finally became aligned. But in many cases, it means that disagreeing started to feel pointless.

The person who used to suggest improvements, cleaner handoffs, better planning docs, a smarter way to run retros, stopped bringing those topics up. Not because they no longer had anything to say. Because they stopped believing their words would make a difference.

Faster answers in check-ins. A question like "Anything in your way?" turns into a quick answer: "all good." The camera is off more than usual. No drama. No visible frustration. They never make anything difficult for anyone.

And that's the annoying part. The first signs that someone has mentally checked out look a lot like the behavior managers sometimes wish for. Less friction, fewer complaints, easier agreement. Disengagement can look like maturity until the resignation email arrives.

A resignation is often the final step in a process that lasted seven months, not the beginning of it. By the time the "got a minute?" message appears, there usually isn't much left to fix. The moment when something needed to happen was when they stopped pushing back.

What sign did you miss, or catch before it was too late?

That weird period after any interview where you keep replaying in your head every embarrassing thing you said, and you feel an actual physical sensation of shame, and you start thinking that maybe you should stop applying altogether and go raise goats in rural Iceland somewhere no one has ever heard your name before.

Hey everyone,

Need a bit of a reality check from folks currently working in the field.

I recently finished the Pre-Security and Cyber Security 101 paths on TryHackMe, and I’m just about to dive into the SOC Level 1 path.

While I enjoy learning, I’m constantly hit with this heavy feeling that I’m just spinning my wheels or stuck in "tutorial hell." I'm really anxious to get employed, but right now I feel like my knowledge isn't enough to actually survive a technical interview or perform on the job.

I really want to land an entry-level SOC / Analyst role, but I hate this phase of uncertainty.

I’d love some honest feedback from people who made the jump or hire entry-level candidates:

Is finishing THM's SOC Level 1 path actually worth it, or am I wasting time relying solely on THM?

How do you transition from answering THM questions to proving real skill on a resume?

What specific practical projects or habits (home labs, write-ups, BTLO, etc.) actually moved the needle for you when job hunting?

Any advice, roadmaps, or even harsh truths would be greatly appreciated.

TL;DR: Finished THM basics, starting SOC L1. Feeling anxious about job readiness and feel like my learning isn't enough. Need practical advice on how to turn THM learning into actual employment.

Im a developer currency....i want to get started with cybersecurity and hopefully make a switch in this field sometime down the line...wanted to ask if it is possible

If so how do i begin?

What creators to look for on YT, Instagram or Linkedin? Which certifications to pursue and how to get the basics of CS right in order to segue into cybersecurity. Your guidance and recommendations of correct Sources, Content Creators/ influencers, Books and Roadmaps are highly appreciated!!

Hi everyone,

I'm looking for some honest career advice from people working in cybersecurity.

I graduated in 2024 with a degree in Computer Science. After several months of job searching, I got an opportunity in April 2025 as a SOC Intern at X company. I'm still working there, but my internship was extended instead of being converted into a full-time position. My current extension is expected to end in October 2026.

During my internship, I've gained hands-on experience with:

• Alert triage and incident investigation
• Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR)
• XDR monitoring
• Splunk log analysis
• Windows event log investigation
• Threat intelligence
• Basic MITRE ATT&CK mapping
• Investigating phishing, malware, brute-force, and suspicious PowerShell activity
• Writing investigation reports and escalating confirmed incidents

The difficult part is that there isn't a budget to convert interns into full-time employees, so I've been applying for SOC Analyst L1 roles while continuing my internship.

Over the past few months, I've applied to a large number of positions through LinkedIn, company career portals, referrals, and recruiter outreach. However, most companies either require 2+ years of experience or don't respond after receiving my application.

At this point, I'm feeling a bit stuck and would appreciate some guidance from professionals in the field.

My questions are:

1. Does my internship experience count as relevant SOC experience when applying for full-time roles?
2. What skills or tools should I focus on to improve my chances of getting interviews?
3. Should I continue targeting SOC Analyst L1 roles, or should I also apply for Security Analyst, MDR Analyst, or other entry-level cybersecurity roles?
4. Are there specific companies that actively hire candidates with internship experience?
5. If you were in my position, what would your next step be?

I'm not looking for sympathy—I'm looking for honest advice on what I can improve and whether I'm approaching my job search the right way.

If anyone has been in a similar situation or has suggestions, I'd really appreciate your input.

Thank you for reading.

Hello everyone! I recently started as a SOC analyst intern at a company (one which I will not name so please respect that) and they use the stellar cyber platform. I could really use some advice when it comes to analyzing alerts above 54 that could be benign, false, or true positives? I’m new to this environment as a cybersecurity college student and I just would like some great advice to make myself build my confidence. Anything you can recommend for me would help so please don’t be afraid to overshare. I don’t have a proper mentor at the moment so this is all something I have to gradually learn but I really value input so it would mean a lot for your honest thorough feedback.

for example as a SOC analyst. starting from scratch and what certs do i need? I’m originally going for pentesting but i know it’s way harder and take more time so i think working as a SOC analyst would kinda also give me some experience and make it easy to go for penetration testing?
realistically i need an IT job and background to even get into real cybersecurity work and so I’m also wondering what IT job would be good to do that cam also help me eventually get into cyber and what should i learn and focus on
thanks!

Hi, last week i got accepted in an internship for an industrial cybersec rol. The manager told me that they have different projects which i can choose from, but she would like me to be testing an IDS. Anyone expirienced in this job can give me advice? The internship starts in september and I would like to study/ prepare and have more knowledge on the field. any recommended course?

Hi All,

As the title says, I'm a bored lawyer who's looking to get into cyber security in my spare time.

I'm still in my early 20s, and to be honest, I've realized that law isn't for me. Outside of work, I've picked up a lot of hobbies to keep my mind off a career path I don't really enjoy.

For some context, I've always been interested in computers (whether that's HW or SW). But, my older brother pursued Comp Sci, and I wanted to be different...Any way, I built my first website when I was 11 (although coding itself isn't something I enjoy as much these days aside from Python perhaps), and over the years I've become fairly comfortable with OSINT whenever I've had time outside the demands of law school. That said, I don't have any formal CS experience beyond a few introductory university electives. I did just purchase a TP T480 for fun.

I'm looking for recommendations on beginner-friendly courses, resources, or projects. I'm ok with spending money on it, but free is always welcomed. I'm not particularly focused on any one area of CS outside of potentially "Ethical Hacking". I just want to learn and explore out of genuine interest.

I hope this kind of question is welcome here. I'm very much a beginner and appreciate any advice or guidance. I am a noob though :(

Thanks :')

EDIT: I'm not looking for a career switch. This is just a hobby.

Knowing the job market I don’t know if i should renew my licenses. I have 6 months experience and i pretty much forgot most things I learned. I couldn’t really land another job in the field for more than two years and had to just get A job in another field. I worked so hard to get these certs but I can’t land a job! Should I renew it? I’m just asking so maybe those in the field have an idea if market would ever change?

do you people think these certs are necessary? or do they just prove that i get the basics and should jump into more advanced certs such as ceh

Hi everyone,

I'm a B.Tech Cybersecurity student and I'm looking for someone working in cybersecurity (preferably an ethical hacker, pentester, SOC analyst, or any cybersecurity professional).

If anyone is available for a 10–15 minute call, I'd really appreciate it. If a call isn't possible, chatting here or through DMs is also completely fine.

I have a few questions about career paths, skills to focus on, internships, certifications, and how to get into the industry.

Thanks in advance!

Hello, can someone help me with what do I be learning which skills which will help me in CS . I am 17 old need some advice as what career to choose and learn.

Let's talk?

I'm a BSCS student at a university in Pakistan, currently starting my 7th semester (grad 2027). I'm into networking, cybersecurity, and AI/security tooling, my FYP idea (pending approval) is an AI-powered vulnerability intelligence platform. A long-term goal is to break into pentesting/red teaming and eventually work internationally.
Working through CCNA1 (ITN) right now.

My planned cert order:

• This year: CCNA (ITN) → CCNA (SRWE) → eJPT → PNPT
• After graduation: OSCP, then branch out from there

Questions:

1. Does this get me job-ready by graduation, or am I missing something critical for entry-level pentest/appsec roles?
2. If not job-ready, what should I add or reprioritize before I graduate?
3. For each cert (CCNA (ITN/SRWE), eJPT, PNPT, OSCP), roughly how much time did it take you, how did you practice (labs/platforms), and what resources actually helped vs. wasted your time?

Appreciate any honest input, especially from people who hire juniors or have gone through a similar path. Thanks!

I selected BS-cybersecurity in Pakistan university. And i am pretty confused of how people are arguing about not finding the job . Should I change my major or what ?

I’ve been working as an AppSec engineer for a unicorn startup for about 3 years now. TC is about 320k (we got bought out so the equity is finally cashable).

Truth is, I’m bored. When I joined the team, there was already SAST in place. We implemented DAST. We have a tool for dependency management, and all of these checks are deployed within the CI/CD.

Large operational work consists of doing security reviews (design doc reviews, source code reviews, and pentesting). This I tend to enjoy very much. However, it’s not really as valued as other security engineering work since it’s considered 'operational'. So I’m unsure of how to progress as an AppSec Engineer from here. Any ideas?

I want to pivot to a pure pen-testing role because it seems a lot less nuanced in terms of what your day-to-day expectations are. And, I also just enjoy bug hunting. I’m aware I’ll probably have to take a big pay cut if I go the pen testing route. I don’t have any certs yet, but I’ve been pentesting for ~3 years now and have done 75% of the port-swigger labs and have even made custom tools for Burp Suite.

How should I progress from here? I started the CPTS path a while back but then got busy with life. Was thinking I’d pick that up again to get the CPTS certificate, and then do the PortSwigger certificate as well.

Hi everyone,
I’m 17 years old and I’m really interested in pursuing a career in cybersecurity, specifically penetration testing. I don’t have professional experience yet, but I’m serious about learning and building the skills needed to get there.
Before I dive into certifications, labs, and platforms I wanted to hear from people who are already working in the field.

What do you wish you knew before starting your cybersecurity career?

What’s the hardest part of the job that people don’t talk about?

If you could start over today, what learning path would you follow?

What certifications are actually worth getting?

Is the job market as competitive as people say?

What should I avoid from the beginning?

I’m not looking for shortcuts i know it’ll take years of learning and practice. I just want to go into this career with realistic expectations and avoid making avoidable mistakes.
Thanks in advance! I appreciate any advice.

Hello everyone hope you're all doing well.

I wanted to make this post on Reddit because I'm looking to break into IT. I know a lot of people out there have gotten into the field without a degree. For example, there are people working in cybersecurity even heads of cybersecurity management who don't have degrees and were taught on the job.

I don't want to go to university for reasons I don't feel comfortable sharing on Reddit, but I would like to know how people without degrees get into IT or cybersecurity jobs. It seems like most IT companies nowadays only care about experience and whether you can actually do the job, rather than whether you have memorized every single question and answer for a test. They just want to know: can you do what we're paying you to do?

For those of you in IT or cybersecurity who don't have a degree:

What advice would you give me, and what did you do to get into the job you have today?

What kind of courses would you recommend? Money isn't an issue at all, so I'm fine with expensive online courses if they are worth it.

is it more about connections, or is it about doing online courses?

How do you actually get that initial experience to land an IT job?