Module 20 Lesson 2 of 6 🕑 ~55 min

> cat module-20-2-ats-linkedin-github.md

ATS, Tailoring, LinkedIn & GitHub

Your CV rarely reaches a human first — and once it does, LinkedIn and GitHub are what a recruiter checks next. This lesson covers all three: getting through automated screening, adjusting your CV per role, and building a professional presence that backs up every claim on the page.

1 Applicant Tracking Systems

Many large organisations use Applicant Tracking Systems (Workday, Greenhouse, Lever, SmartRecruiters, SAP SuccessFactors, Oracle Recruiting, iCIMS) to manage thousands of applications, and recruiters often search candidates by keyword — Active Directory, PowerShell, Microsoft 365, Azure, Linux, TCP/IP, SIEM, IAM, ServiceNow, Python, AWS, and similar. Your CV should naturally contain terminology relevant to the job description — not by copying the entire posting verbatim, but by aligning genuine skills with the language the employer actually used.

2 Tailoring Your CV by Role

Don't use one CV blindly for every application — shift emphasis by job family. Applying for IT Support: Windows, Microsoft 365, Active Directory, networking, troubleshooting, ticketing, customer communication. SOC Analyst: SIEM, logs, incident response, authentication, Windows Event Logs, network traffic, threat analysis. IAM Analyst: Active Directory, Entra ID, MFA, SSO, SAML, OAuth, OIDC, RBAC, provisioning. Cloud Support: Linux, networking, DNS, APIs, AWS/Azure, identity, troubleshooting. You don't need four completely different CVs — you need the same true information reordered and re-emphasised for each target.

3 LinkedIn: Headline, About & Networking

Recruiters search LinkedIn constantly, so your profile should reinforce your CV, not just repeat it. Avoid a headline like "Looking for opportunities" — instead: "Junior IT & Cybersecurity Professional | Active Directory | Microsoft 365 | Networking | Linux | IAM | Security Operations" or "Aspiring SOC Analyst | SIEM | Incident Response | Networking | Linux | Microsoft Security." The headline should tell recruiters what you want to do, not just that you want something.

Your About section should explain what you're learning, what technology interests you, what you've built, and what roles you're targeting:

I am developing practical skills across IT infrastructure,
networking, identity and cybersecurity.

My hands-on lab experience includes Active Directory,
Windows Server, Linux, PowerShell, Microsoft Entra ID,
network troubleshooting, REST APIs and SIEM analysis.

I have built a multi-VM cybersecurity home lab where I practise
authentication troubleshooting, log analysis, network traffic
analysis and incident investigation.

I am currently seeking opportunities in IT support,
cybersecurity, IAM or security operations.

Don't underestimate unrelated jobs when listing experience — customer service demonstrates communication, conflict handling, prioritisation and documentation; retail demonstrates customer interaction, responsibility and time management; warehouse work demonstrates operational discipline, process adherence and teamwork. Technology employers frequently value these transferable skills more than candidates expect.

Connect with engineers, recruiters, hiring managers, technical leads, cybersecurity professionals, alumni and meetup participants — but never open with "Can you get me a job?" Engage professionally instead: "Hi, I noticed you work in IAM engineering. I'm currently learning Active Directory, Entra ID, SAML and OAuth and I'm trying to better understand how IAM teams work in large organisations. I enjoyed your post about identity security and wanted to connect." Networking is about building relationships, not extracting favours.

4 GitHub: Repositories & Security

GitHub isn't just for software developers — publish PowerShell scripts, Bash scripts, Python utilities, log analysis examples, API examples, infrastructure documentation, home-lab documentation, detection rules, configuration examples, and troubleshooting guides. A sensible structure:

cybersecurity-home-lab/
README.md
active-directory/
    domain-setup.md
    users-and-groups.md
    group-policy.md
networking/
    wireshark-analysis.md
    dns-troubleshooting.md
powershell/
    create-users.ps1
    audit-groups.ps1
api/
    oauth-example.md
    api-troubleshooting.md
siem/
    failed-login-investigation.md
incident-response/
    ransomware-simulation.md

Before pushing anything to a public repository, what must you never include — and why does it matter more than it might seem?

Reveal the answer

Never upload passwords, API keys, access tokens, private certificates, AWS credentials, SSH private keys, customer data, or internal corporate documentation. Public GitHub repositories are visible to everyone, and a leaked credential can be scraped and abused within minutes of a push — this is exactly the kind of security hygiene employers are looking for candidates to already have, not something they expect to teach you. Getting this wrong in a public portfolio project is a worse signal to an employer than not having a portfolio at all.

A good README explains what the project is, why you built it, what technologies were used, what you learned, what problems you encountered, and how you troubleshot them — employers care about the learning process at least as much as the finished result.