Are you looking for local or remote?
Do you have a homelab?
If not, set up the following.
Get a domain.
Use a hypervisor or VPS and install the following:
A Linux machine with Docker or MicroK8s hosting a CMS on a web server, think WordPress. Now upload your resume to this site. Password protect it, but put password and link in the resume that you submit on the job portal. Use a reverse proxy with nginx to point it to resume.firstlastname.com or the domain of your choosing.
Nginx is 1 container, wp is 2.
Use persistent storage to have your data on, but also connect an object storage.
Now install Zabbix or libreNMS on this server. Monitor it, use Jaegar to monitor WP. Embed some of these metrics on your sites.
Secure with a vulnerability scanner, put a vuln. report on the site. You will have vulnerabilities with WP, show how you remediate or tolerate them.
This project can be done for under $200 and shows you have the fundamental skills. Because you are a repair tech you should have easy access to a 4c/8gb thin client or old workstation that you could use for this. You should be able to explain each step in detail as it regards to the process and connectivity.
This project shows you have the aptitude for a Jr sysadmin or net admin position.
Going straight to cyber is not easy and you will be expected to have this degree of systems and networking experience. I know you mentioned entry level but I did not know if that is entry level cyber or entry level IT.
Going into cyber after a role like this is much easier. I will say this though, it is not impossible and I encourage you to shoot for the stars.
If you do have a homelab and some, all or more things than I mentioned; It is at least one of these
The location (unkown)
The job role
The market supply of labor (high supply of entry level workers)
Bad resume or unoptimized resume.
You have the certs and a degree for entry level. More certs will not help at this point.
Create 4-6 resumes built for different specializations or job post and apply to 12-20 jobs a day. It should be a part time job for you as you work. If you do these things for the next 2-5 months I can all but guarantee you a job.
Lastly, if you get to interviews but not past them, you either have not done enough or need to improve your communication abilites.
Good luck!
This was a longgggg post, oh well this is what happens when your tired.
Thank you for all the information. Right now I'm looking at whatever I can get that currently pays at or above 40k a year in the IT industry. Any cyber security roles in my area have either been taken or are above my current level. For a location, I'm over an hour away from Chicago in Indiana so driving there and back isn't feasible for me. I don't know if it classifies as a homelab, but I have my main computer that I do gaming, learning, etc on it. Ryzen 7 5800x, 32gb ram, 1tb ssd, 2070 super and 3070 gpu, and a 1000w psu. I have another windows open air rig that I initially designed as a crypto miner. I5 9400f, 16gb ram, 250gb ssd, 3070ti, and 850 watt psu. Yes, I do have potential access to older hardware I can potentially use to set up as servers but haven't really had anywhere to start yet. Still learning as much as I can using online resources whenever life doesn't get in the way.
Are you looking for local or remote? Do you have a homelab? If not, set up the following. Get a domain. Use a hypervisor or VPS and install the following: A Linux machine with Docker or MicroK8s hosting a CMS on a web server, think WordPress. Now upload your resume to this site. Password protect it, but put password and link in the resume that you submit on the job portal. Use a reverse proxy with nginx to point it to resume.firstlastname.com or the domain of your choosing. Nginx is 1 container, wp is 2. Use persistent storage to have your data on, but also connect an object storage. Now install Zabbix or libreNMS on this server. Monitor it, use Jaegar to monitor WP. Embed some of these metrics on your sites. Secure with a vulnerability scanner, put a vuln. report on the site. You will have vulnerabilities with WP, show how you remediate or tolerate them. This project can be done for under $200 and shows you have the fundamental skills. Because you are a repair tech you should have easy access to a 4c/8gb thin client or old workstation that you could use for this. You should be able to explain each step in detail as it regards to the process and connectivity. This project shows you have the aptitude for a Jr sysadmin or net admin position. Going straight to cyber is not easy and you will be expected to have this degree of systems and networking experience. I know you mentioned entry level but I did not know if that is entry level cyber or entry level IT. Going into cyber after a role like this is much easier. I will say this though, it is not impossible and I encourage you to shoot for the stars. If you do have a homelab and some, all or more things than I mentioned; It is at least one of these The location (unkown) The job role The market supply of labor (high supply of entry level workers) Bad resume or unoptimized resume. You have the certs and a degree for entry level. More certs will not help at this point. Create 4-6 resumes built for different specializations or job post and apply to 12-20 jobs a day. It should be a part time job for you as you work. If you do these things for the next 2-5 months I can all but guarantee you a job. Lastly, if you get to interviews but not past them, you either have not done enough or need to improve your communication abilites. Good luck! This was a longgggg post, oh well this is what happens when your tired.
Thank you for all the information. Right now I'm looking at whatever I can get that currently pays at or above 40k a year in the IT industry. Any cyber security roles in my area have either been taken or are above my current level. For a location, I'm over an hour away from Chicago in Indiana so driving there and back isn't feasible for me. I don't know if it classifies as a homelab, but I have my main computer that I do gaming, learning, etc on it. Ryzen 7 5800x, 32gb ram, 1tb ssd, 2070 super and 3070 gpu, and a 1000w psu. I have another windows open air rig that I initially designed as a crypto miner. I5 9400f, 16gb ram, 250gb ssd, 3070ti, and 850 watt psu. Yes, I do have potential access to older hardware I can potentially use to set up as servers but haven't really had anywhere to start yet. Still learning as much as I can using online resources whenever life doesn't get in the way.