Locations: Cheltenham (GCHQ) and Central London (MI5 or MI6)
Hours of work: Full-time (36 - 37 hours) and office-based for the duration of Internship, plus five day's leave
Salary:GCHQ: £4,972 plus accommodation assistance for duration of the InternshipMI5: £6,159, plus accommodation assistance for duration of the InternshipMI6: £6,363, plus accommodation assistance for duration of the InternshipSome travel expenses may be available
Bringing fresh perspectives to intelligence.
Ever wondered if a career in intelligence could be right for you? Or is it something you've never considered, but could get curious about? Our Summer Intelligence Internship is a great opportunity to spend some real time working in the UK's Intelligence Services. Discover how we keep the UK safe and find out if you could see yourself building a career with us.
GCHQ, MI5 and MI6 are the UK's Intelligence Services. We work together to safeguard Britain's people, interests and businesses from various threats at home, overseas and online, including cyber-attacks, espionage, terrorism, and organised crime. Through the ingenuity of our people, we gather secret intelligence and work closely with our partners in the UK and overseas to detect threats and work out ways to stop them.
EligibilityPeople from a Black, Asian, mixed-heritage or other ethnic minority background and who are also from a socially or economically disadvantaged background* are currently under-represented in the UK's Intelligence Services. That's why we offer this 10- to 11-week internship to university students in their penultimate or final year of study (for the 2024/2025 academic year), who are specifically from these backgrounds.
* For more information about what this means, visit our Internships page here .
Internship datesAs part of the internship, you'll get pro-rata annual leave. So, you'll have up to five days off during the periods below.
GCHQ: 30th June 2025 to 5th September 2025 (10 weeks)MI5: 16th June 2025 to 29th August 2025 (11 weeks)MI6: 12th June 2025 to 29th August 2025 (11 weeks and two days)
About the internshipsWe're running three internships in our intelligence teams at GCHQ, MI5 and MI6 during the summer of 2025. Whichever agency you choose to join, you'll help piece together intelligence and identify possible threats. As part of a cohort of fellow interns, you'll gain unique insights into the Intelligence Services - while sharing your own, because everyone's perspectives contribute to making our operations a success.
You'll get access to specialist training and lots of support from a dedicated internship manager, plus mentors, line managers, and the wider team along the way. It's a great chance to gain new skills and develop your abilities, as well as figure out if a career in intelligence is something you want to pursue after your degree. If it is, you'll have the opportunity to apply for a role with your chosen agency once the internship is over (you'll still need to go through the usual application process if you do).
Choosing the right agency for youWhichever agency you choose, you'll have a brilliant experience ahead of you. You can only apply to one of us, so here's some insight about each internship to help you pick:
GCHQLocation: Cheltenham (accommodation provided)Dates: 30th June 2025 to 5th September 2025 (you'll have five days of annual leave during this time)
If you've got a passion for data and analysing information to see what it can reveal, GCHQ might be the right agency for you.
We're the UK's Intelligence, cyber and security agency. We use cutting-edge technology, ingenuity and partnerships to identify, analyse and disrupt threats to protect the UK from terrorism, cyber-attacks and espionage. We focus on five main areas: Cyber Security, Counter Terrorism, Strategic Advantage, Serious and Organised Crime and Supporting Defence.
As an intern at GCHQ, you'll be working in one of our intelligence mission teams. Our Intelligence Data Analyst teams work in a rapidly changing technological environment, problem solving every day. We use bespoke technology, finding information from different places, including a high volume of data generated by many internet-connected devices. If you do have specialist skills such as cyber, data science, or coding experience, you may get the opportunity to use and develop these skills on the internship. However, these are not required and are not an essential part of the role.
MI5Location: London (accommodation provided)Dates: 16th June 2025 to 29th August 2025 (you'll have five days of annual leave during this time)
If you're an enthusiastic problem solver who's interested in looking after the UK's security at home, you might want to consider joining us at MI5.
We keep the country safe from serious threats like terrorism and attempts by states to harm the UK, its people and way of life. We carry out investigations by obtaining, analysing and assessing intelligence, and then work with a range of partners, including MI6 and GCHQ to disrupt these threats.
On the MI5 internship you'll be placed in one of our investigative teams where you'll experience what life as an Intelligence Officer is like. You'll work closely with your development partner and as part of the wider team, learning how live investigations are run. You'll also spend time shadowing people in different roles and departments who are crucial to the Intelligence Officer role, gaining exposure to a variety of different areas across MI5.
MI6Location: London (accommodation provided)Dates: 12th June 2025 to 29th August 2025 (you'll have five days of annual leave during this time)
If you're passionate about world events, curious about different cultures and work that's focused overseas, you'll be fascinated by what we do at MI6.
MI6, also known as SIS (the Secret intelligence Service), protects the security and economic wellbeing of the UK from overseas threats such as regional instability, terrorism, and cyber-attacks. Using innovative technologies, we work across the globe developing foreign contacts who can help the UK government counter these threats, through the provision of secret intelligence.
At MI6, you'll be working with a dedicated internship manager for the duration of the 11-week, 2-day internship, to ensure you have a varied experience within one of our exciting mission teams. You'll be introduced to all sorts of operations, whether that be from a data perspective, a requirements perspective, or many others. More importantly, you'll see the human side of how we operate across the many strands of our work. You'll also be given the opportunity to see and experience our training via a short residential trip.
About youFor the 2024/2025 academic year, you'll need to be in your penultimate or final year of university, from a Black, Asian, mixed-heritage or ethnic minority background, and also from a socially or economically disadvantaged background**.
Whichever agency you choose, you'll share our values - integrity, respect, creativity, and the desire to have a positive impact on the UK. It's also worth considering what you're passionate about, and what you enjoy, when you're choosing which agency to apply for.
We all look for naturally inquisitive people who thrive in a team and bring real enthusiasm. People who enjoy making sense of complex information, doing challenging puzzles, work collaboratively and are passionate about contributing to keeping the country safe.
Our operations are hugely varied, which is why increasing diversity in our agencies is needed more than ever before. Having a diverse workforce is vital to ensure we have diverse insights, perspectives, innovative ideas and different skills to keep the country safe. More importantly, a diverse organisation makes for an enjoyable, fulfilling working environment. And you could be exactly who we need to help us achieve our mission.
**For more information on the internship eligibility criteria, please visit our Summer Intelligence Internship page .
Salary, expenses and accommodationWhile you're with us, you'll contribute to our work. So, we'll pay you a pro-rata salary. If you join us at GCHQ in Cheltenham, you'll receive a salary of £4,972. With MI5, your salary will be £6,159. And at MI6, it'll be £6,363.
If you need it, we'll also provide you with free accommodation for the duration of your internship, so you don't need to live nearby to consider applying to us. Further to this, some travel expenses for the duration of the internship may be available.
Annual leave and other benefitsWe'll give you five days of annual leave that you can use at any time during the internship. And while you're with us, you'll also have access to organisation-wide events where you can network with people from other teams, learning even more about what we do, and where you could take your career.
Equal OpportunitiesAt GCHQ, MI5 and MI6 diversity and inclusion are critical to our mission. To protect the UK, we need a truly diverse workforce that reflects the society we serve. This includes diversity in every sense of the word: those with different backgrounds, ages, ethnicities, gender identities, sexual orientations, ways of thinking and those with disabilities or neurodivergent conditions. We therefore welcome and encourage applications from those from an ethnic minority and low socio-economic backgrounds who are currently underrepresented in our workforce.
Find out more about our culture, working environment and diversity on our websites:
http://www.mi5.gov.uk/careers/diversityhttps://www.gchq-careers.co.uk/life-at-gchq/diversity-inclusion.htmlhttps://www.sis.gov.uk/explore-careers.html
What to ExpectOur recruitment process is fair, transparent, and based on merit. Here's a brief overview of each stage, in order:
For GCHQInitial application form - you'll be asked to provide some basic personal details and answer eligibility questions.Full application form - you'll be asked to provide your education details and work history and to answer some questions exploring your strengths and skills in relation to the internship including technical aptitude.Online exercise - you'll be asked to complete an online exercise which will give you an insight into the type of work our analysts do.Final interview - you'll be asked questions about your motivation for applying for the internship as well as questions looking at your strengths and skills.
For MI5/MI6Initial application form - you'll be asked to provide some basic personal details and answer eligibility questions.Full application form - you'll be asked to provide your education details and work history and to answer some questions exploring your strengths and skills in relation to the internship.Situational Judgement Test - you'll be required to reach the set pass mark.
On successful completion of these stages:Half Day Online Assessment Centre - this consists of an interview, a roleplay and a written report (MI5).Face-to-face interviews and role-play (MI6).
Please note, you must successfully pass each stage of the process in order to progress to the next. Your application may take around 6 - 9 months to process including vetting, so we advise you continue any current employment until you have received your final internship offer.
We're Disability ConfidentWe are proud to have achieved Leader status within the DWP's Disability Confident scheme. This is aimed at encouraging employers to think differently about disability and take action to improve how they recruit, retain and develop disabled people. Being Disability Confident, we aim to ensure that a fair and proportionate number of disabled applicants that meet the minimum criteria for this position will be offered an interview where practicable; this is known as 'Offer of an Interview'. To secure an interview for this vacancy, the minimum criteria (in order of application process) are:
For GCHQInitial application form - you'll be asked to provide some basic personal details and answer eligibility questions.Full application form - you'll be asked to provide your education details and work history and to answer some questions exploring your strengths and skills in relation to the internship including technical aptitude.Online exercise - you'll be asked to complete an online exercise which will give you an insight into the type of work our analysts do.Final interview - you'll be asked questions about your motivation for applying for the internship as well as questions looking at your strengths and skills.
For MI5/MI6Initial application form - you'll be asked to provide some basic personal details and answer eligibility questions.Full application form - you'll be asked to provide your education details and work history and to answer some questions exploring your strengths and skills in relation to the internship.Situational Judgement Test - you'll be required to reach the set pass mark.
Before You ApplyTo work at the agencies, you need to be a British citizen or hold dual British nationality. You can read our full eligibility criteria here.https://www.gchq-careers.co.uk/how-to-apply.htmlhttps://www.mi5.gov.uk/careers/applying-for-jobshttps://www.sis.gov.uk/apply-now.html
These roles require the highest security clearance, known as Developed Vetting (DV). It's something everyone in the UK Intelligence Community undertakes. You can find out more about the vetting process here.https://www.gchq-careers.co.uk/how-to-apply.htmlhttps://www.mi5.gov.uk/careers/applying-for-jobs/vettinghttps://www.sis.gov.uk/apply-now.html
Please note we have a strict drugs policy, so once you start your application, you can't take any recreational drugs and you'll need to declare your previous drug usage at the relevant stage.
Remember, these internships are only open to university students in their penultimate or final year of study, who are also from an ethnic minority and socially or economically disadvantaged background. If you aren't eligible for this internship, we'd encourage you to visit our careers sites to explore the many other opportunities we have available throughout the year.
Before you apply, we advise you to consider setting up a separate email address for your contact with us, to ensure your personal and application correspondence remain separate. Try to avoid having identifying features in your email address, such as your first and/or surname and date of birth. This is good practise and will help you to manage your application with us more discretely.
Please note, you should only launch your application from within the UK. If you are based overseas, you should wait until you visit the UK to launch an application. Applying from outside the UK will impact on our ability to progress your application. You should not discuss your application, other than with your partner or a close family member.
Right to Withdraw Statement:Please be aware that we withhold the right to bring forward the closing date for this role from the original closing date once a certain number of applications have been received. Please be mindful of this and submit your application at your earliest convenience to avoid disappointment.
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