Career break
2024-09 to 2026-08
- Career break after Northrop Grumman, ending when I started my M.S. in Information Technology and Management at Illinois Tech in 2026-08.
$ whoami
Jimmy Wong
IT, systems & cloud engineer. 4 years at Northrop Grumman, a self-built homelab, M.S. in progress.
> download Resume PDF version > contact me > linkedin > business card
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## about me
IT and systems engineer with 4 years at Northrop Grumman across DevOps, network and systems engineering, plus a self-built homelab running redundant services, offsite backups and self-hosted web apps.
I am pursuing an M.S. in Information Technology and Management at Illinois Tech (expected May 2028) and I am looking for a full-time cloud, systems or infrastructure engineering role starting January 2028.
I enjoy exploring technology, solving problems, and building practical solutions in IT infrastructure, cloud computing, networking, and cybersecurity. I value teamwork, clear communication, and learning from others to improve solutions. My goal is to strengthen my technical skills, advance my IT career, and build reliable, automated infrastructure that solves real-world problems.
roles i am targeting
preferred locations
Work mode: remote, hybrid or on-site. Open to relocating within the US for the right role.
- based in
- Chicago, IL
- availability
- Full-time, starting January 2028
- languages
- English, American Sign Language (ASL), basic Cantonese / Mandarin
## key skills
languages & scripting
virtualization & cloud
operating systems
networking & protocols
tools & automation
work management
hardware
## experience
Northrop Grumman Corporation · 2020-07 to 2024-09 · Maryland & Virginia
Associate PATHWAYS Systems Engineer
2023-09 to 2024-09 · Remote
- Built Cameo models and diagrams to standardize processes; published approved models for enterprise-wide standardization.
- Worked in SAFe and Lean-Agile teams; reviewed technical documentation and architecture diagrams.
- Gave status updates to Product Owners 2-3 times a month and met SMEs biweekly.
Associate PATHWAYS Systems Engineer (Networks Engineer)
2021-08 to 2023-09 · Baltimore, MD
- Operated and maintained LAN, WAN and VPNs; planned hardware and software changes for data and voice networks.
- Resolved ServiceNow tickets in 1-2 business days on average and handled RMA requests with a 48-hour turnaround.
- Designed network architectures, selected hardware and software, and kept network documentation current.
Associate PATHWAYS Systems Engineer (DevOpsSec Engineer)
2020-07 to 2021-08 · Linthicum Heights, MD
- Benchmarked servers and wrote automation scripts to streamline repetitive work.
- Deployed and configured new servers; managed server and switch configurations, updates and maintenance.
- Diagnosed and resolved hardware and software issues within 1-2 business days.
## education & certification
Illinois Institute of Technology
2026-08 to 2028-05 (expected) · in progress
M.S., Information Technology and Management (ITM)
Rochester Institute of Technology
2017-01 to 2020-05 · Magna Cum Laude · GPA 3.7 / 4.0
B.S., Computing Information and Technologies, immersion in Cultural Anthropology
National Technical Institute for the Deaf at RIT
2015-08 to 2018-12 · Magna Cum Laude · GPA 3.7 / 4.0
A.S., Applied Computer Technology
certification
- AWS Cloud Practitioner, Amazon Web Services
- Issued 2024-05 · expires 2027-05
- URL to AWS Verification
languages
- English
- American Sign Language (ASL)
- Cantonese / Mandarin (basic)
## projects
Each card opens a write-up on this site.
2026-09 to present
Homelab v2
Open-source rebuild running redundant, production-style services, this portfolio and an intranet dashboard.
read the write-up → 2020-07 to 2024-10Homelab v1
Self-hosted storage, backups and applications for clients, kept at 99.99% uptime.
read the write-up → 2026Resume Pipeline
Builds my resume PDF from a YAML file with GitHub Actions and publishes it automatically.
read the write-up →## events timeline
Conferences, workshops and competitions I have attended. Newest first.
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AWS JAM
Illinois Tech. Challenges completed, skills practiced.
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🍿 Code, Competition & Free Pizza: The Full Stack Watch Party! by AWS
Illinois Tech. Watched an episode of "The Full Stack" show, played a game that happened on the show, and had a dinner with people to socialize.
-
MITRE Project Intern Expo
McLean, VA. Presented the poster "FCC National Test Lab".
## contact
Hiring or want to talk? Email is the fastest way to reach me. I reply within 1-2 business days.
- Jimmy.Wong@jwong.org
- linkedin.com/in/wongjimmy545
- github
- github.com/jwong545
- website
- jwong.org
- resume
- resume.pdf · resume.jwong.org
- location
- Chicago, IL (open to NYC, Seattle, Boston, remote)
- save me
- add to contacts (.vcf) · business card with QR code