THIS VACANCY IS NOW CLOSED. ANY NEW APPLICATIONS STARTED AFTER 15TH SEPTEMBER WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED!

Challenge yourself.  Understand others.  Protect us all.

A career as a behavioural scientist in MI5 offers a unique opportunity to apply academic and specialist skills to issues of national importance – contributing directly to saving lives and keeping the country safe.

You’ll spend the first few years of your career in MI5’s Behavioural Science Unit, where we will make good use of your existing expertise and support you in developing new skills and knowledge.  Supported by an excellent programme of professional and personal development, you’ll tackle challenging and varied work of national and international importance.  Later, if you choose (and subject to business requirements), there are opportunities to work as a behavioural scientist in other parts of MI5, in other intelligence agencies, and in other government departments.

During your career here, you will make a critical contribution to ensuring that the work of MI5 is grounded in the best available scientific evidence.  Depending on your skills and knowledge, your work could involve offering specialist advice and support, conducting in-house research on threats to national security, working with researchers outside the organisation and with our international partners to identify and translate high quality research, training frontline intelligence officer in core skills and advising policy makers.

The Role

We are looking for behavioural scientists who will support current operations and develop future capability.  You’ll provide expert advice to investigators, analysts and other intelligence officers working across a range of operations. 

You will contribute to the development of new and existing capabilities through delivery of training, conducting research and translating existing research into practical and useful advice for practitioners.

We are also looking for behavioural scientists who focus on the technological environments in which national security threats develop and can be mitigated – now and in the future.  In particular you will develop our understanding of behaviour in online environments and of human interaction with new technologies.

Skills and Experience

To join the MI5 cadre of behavioural scientists you’ll need a strong background and training in a behavioural or social science discipline and a deep understanding of human behaviour.  We are interested in people from a range of backgrounds and disciplinary expertise but you must be educated to at least Master’s level and ideally hold (or be near to completing) a doctorate.  You will have a demonstrable strong commitment to ethical, evidence-based practice and to continuous professional development.

You do not need any experience of working in national security or intelligence areas as training will be given.  However, you’ll be able to demonstrate experience of applying your specialist skills to complex research or practical problems.  You’ll have a proven ability to communicate effectively with people from a range of backgrounds, and be comfortable working as part of a multi-disciplinary team.

For these posts your discipline could be forensic, social, personality, or occupational psychology, but it could also be clinical, sports, coaching, developmental or health psychology or human factors.  People with a background in criminology, anthropology, human geography, sociology, area studies, or forensic linguistics could also make a valuable contribution and increase the diversity of our team.  You may currently be applying your expertise in a range of public or private sectors.  Experience of research and analysis of online data would be an advantage. 

People from a computer science, cyber-security, or data science background who have specialised in applying their expertise to the analysis of human behaviour will also be considered.

Before you apply

Honesty and integrity are crucial if you want to work at MI5.  You should read about the vetting process and satisfy yourself that you meet the criteria outlined in the vetting pages of How to Apply section prior to submitting and application.

Giving misleading information or omitting or concealing information during the recruitment and vetting process is viewed very seriously.  You should ensure that you follow our guidance from when you apply.

Recruitment Process

The first thing we will ask you to do is complete our pre-screening questions to find out of you meet our initial criteria.  If you meet this criteria we will then ask you to begin an application.  You will need to create a login and provide your full name, email address and a memorable password.  Once you have successfully created a personal account, you will be required to complete an initial registration form, providing contact details and equal opportunities monitoring information.

After submitting this form you will be sent an email asking you to take an online verbal reasoning test which forms part of the formal assessment process.  On receipt of this invitation email you will have up to one week to take the test.  If you do not complete the test within this timeframe we will assume that you no longer wish to proceed with your application.

This test is designed to assess the key skill of reasoning with verbal information which is essential for the role within MI5.  You will be given 25 minutes to complete the test and you will need to do this in one sitting.
Full instructions will be provided for the test before you sit them.  We operate a strict re-testing policy and your skills will be tested again further through the process.

We encourage you to complete some practice questions for the Verbal Reasoning Test.  The practice questions are untimed, are not a compulsory part of the assessment and will not affect the outcome of your application.  If you wish to complete the practice questions for the Verbal Reasoning Test please click on the link below and your will be redirected:

http://www.cubiksonline.com/FPD/PracticeAssessment/GenericVerbal/VerbalInstructions.aspx

Should you require reasonable adjustments with regard to the online tests due to a disability or learning difficulty please ensure you contact the recruitment team prior to attempting the tests by following the instructions provided at this stage.

If you pass the test we will invite you to complete and submit our full application form where you will be asked to explain your motivation for applying to MI5, as well as competency and capability questions to explore your suitability for the role.  You will also be requested to upload a copy of your current CV.

It is essential that your CV:

- Covers the last 10 years of employment and/or education, clearly specifying job an/or course ‘from’ and ‘to’ dates in month and year details.
- Clearly demonstrates the key activities and responsibilities you have performed in each role detailed
- States what academic and professional qualifications you possess.  
The selection process is competitive at all stages and involves a series of interviews and assessments, starting with an initial application sift of your application and CV to check your have the potential skills and motivation to work for MI5.

If you are successful at this stage you will be invited to an Assessment Centre.  This will focus on the key skills andcompetencies essential for effective performance in the role and will include a presentation, role-play and Final Selection Board interview.  This will then be followed by a security interview with a vetting officer.  Please be aware that the recruitment and vetting process may take around 6 months.

Guaranteed Interview Scheme

As part of our commitment to the “Positive About Disabled People” scheme we offer an interview to all candidates with a disability who meet our minimum criteria for the job vacancy that they are applying for.  This is known as the Guaranteed Interview Scheme (GIS).  To secure an interview for this vacancy the minimum criteria (in order of application process) is:

-    Vacancy Eligibility Questions
You will be asked a series of questions relating to this vacancy.  If you meet the criteria here you will be directed to the initial application form.

-    Online Verbal Reasoning Test
This test is designed to assess the key skill of reasoning with verbal information.

-    Application Form Sift

Along with the standard eligibility requirements for this post, your application will be assessed on how far you meet the job specifications and the motivational fit/competency questions you answer.  Each answer will be scored.  Your application must score the minimum amount of points set.

On successful completion of these stages you will be invited to an Assessment Centre.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible to apply you must be a British citizen (either born here or naturalised) and one of your parents must be a British citizen or have substantial ties to the UK.  Due to vetting requirements you also need to be 18 years old or above.

Candidates must normally have been resident in the UK for nine out of ten years.  This is particularly important if you were born outside the UK.  We will still consider you if you have for example served overseas with HM Forces or in some other official capacity as a representative of Her Majesty’s Government, studied abroad, or lived overseas with your parents.

Discretion

Owing to the sensitivity of our work, we do not publicly disclose the identities of our staff.  Discretion is vital.  You should not discuss your application other than with your partner or close family member.  You should not post on social media sites about your application or discuss it with anyone else at this stage.  You will receive further guidance during the recruitment process.  

You should not launch an application from outside the UK as it will impact on our ability to progress your application.  
All applications will be considered on merit.  The Security Service is committed to reflecting both equal opportunities and the society we protect.