Foundation Analysts

Hours: Shift work required during part of the programme, but this will be agreed in advance
Flexible Working: Available on completion of training and shift work period, subject to business need

Our information. Your attention to detail. Let’s build the bigger picture.

At MI5, you can build a career doing what matters: stopping threats and preventing harm. It’s a complex yet fascinating task. It’s also one that takes all kinds of people, with different perspectives and skills. As a Foundation Analyst on our structured development programme, you’ll be joining an experienced and supportive team, who will help you build the skills you need to be a Foundation Analyst and help protect the people, places and communities that matter to you.

As a Foundation Analyst you’ll work with and assess a variety of intelligence, from audio files, to written communications. That means the details you will learn to find will help us to successfully shape investigations. It’s incredibly interesting and varied work that has a real impact. But you won’t be doing it alone. We’ll provide all the training you need, and as you learn, you’ll work alongside experienced analysts to help find the answers to questions which will help move our investigations forward. You’ll collaborate with other teams to help determine exactly what you’re looking for and the data you need to analyse. It means you’ll have a clear focus and know which tasks to tackle first. Using your communication skills, you’ll share your progress and explain your findings in a clear and logical way.

Throughout the programme, we’ll give you the right support and resources to develop your skills. This will include specific training on how to analyse different types of data. The programme will give you the time to learn everything and then put it into practice, before moving onto the next stage.

For this opportunity, we’re not looking for experts – we’re looking for potential. That’s why you don’t need a degree or experience in analysis to apply, just a grade C/4 in GCSE English or equivalent. What you will need is to be naturally curious, with a proactive attitude and a good team player. You’ll also be keen to learn and develop, and your flexibility and motivation will also help you to adapt to changing situations and complete tasks efficiently.

So, if you’re a problem solver who loves learning, has great attention to detail, and enjoys working with others, this could be just the career change, or the career start, you’re looking for. Working alongside an experienced team of experts, we’ll provide all the training and support you need to put your skills to use, creating real-world impact that helps to keep us all safe.

At MI5 diversity and inclusion are critical to our mission. We therefore welcome and encourage applications from everyone, including those from groups that are under-represented in our workforce such as women, those from an ethnic minority background, people with disabilities and those from low socio-economic backgrounds. Find out more about our culture, working environment and diversity on our website.

To be eligible to apply, you must be a British Citizen. If you hold dual nationality, of which one component is British, you will nonetheless be considered. Candidates must normally have been resident in the UK for seven out of the last ten years. This is particularly important if you were born outside the UK. You can apply at the age of 17 years, if successful you will not be offered a start date prior to your 18th birthday. Full eligibility details can be found on our website.