Vetting Officers Ref. 1505

At MI5 and MI6, we help protect the UK and UK interests from threats to national security at home and abroad. It means we work against everything from terrorism and espionage, to cyber threats and sabotage. It’s a complex task, which is why we need the right people to join us.

About the role

Vetting Officers hear the good, the bad, and everything in between. It’s about having insightful, confidential conversations with people to build a full picture of who they are. Essentially, you’re helping to keep the country safe by thoroughly vetting candidates, and identifying anything about them that could pose a risk to national security.

In this vital role, you’ll put individuals at ease and encourage them to be open about personal, sensitive matters. These could include everything from family history, social life and relationships, to financial affairs and internet behaviour. The interviews are incredibly detailed; it takes both diplomacy and discretion, using your emotional intelligence to find honest answers. That’s why you’ll instil trust and support to discover their unedited life stories.

Empathetic yet assertive, you’ll build rapport and have an innate sense for the truth. You’ll know when to dig a little deeper, with the ability to spot inaccuracies or inconsistencies. But no matter what you hear, you’ll remain professional and unbiased. Your analysis will be built on the evidence and a careful consideration of the risks that are presented. Ultimately, once you’ve collated all the information you need – you’ll summarise your analysis and recommend whether someone should hold Developed Vetting (DV) security clearance.

A great listener and a natural people-person, you’ll handle delicate matters sensitively - always acting with the utmost levels of honesty and integrity. You’ll need to be organised and logical, yet intuitive and curious, able to naturally absorb and record a lot of detail whilst asking questions. Plus, you’ll enjoy writing as you will be bringing all the relevant information together in case reports that are detailed, clear and concise.

You will be based in London, but may be regularly required to travel in the UK. The role can be challenging so you will need to be self-motivated and resilient and you will need to effectively manage your own workload to ensure you meet tight deadlines.

In return, you’ll have a rewarding, varied and fulfilling job as part of a team who play a vital part in keeping the country safe.

Recruitment Process

The first thing we will ask you to do is complete our pre-screening questions to find out if you meet our initial criteria. If you do meet these criteria we will then ask you to begin an application. You will need to create a log in 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.

The application process will involve you completing a verbal reasoning online test, which is included because Vetting Officers need to appraise information quickly. You will not be sifted out on your results for this test. Following this, you will complete an online application form which will cover relevant experience, your motivation for applying and some situational judgement questions aligned to the role, but which require no prior knowledge or experience of the role.

To process your application, it is essential that you provide all the information requested in the application form. Our recruitment team will complete an application sift and successful applicants will be invited to a telephone interview to check you have the potential skills and motivation to work for MI5 and MI6. If successful you will then be invited to an Assessment Centre to further explore your skills.  If successful you will then be invited to the final stage of the recruitment process, which is a face to face interview.

On successful completion of the recruitment process you will begin going through our vetting process, which will involve a security interview and referee interviews.

Guaranteed Interview Scheme

As part of our commitment to being a 'Disability Confident' employer 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). If you meet this criteria, you will be invited to interview. This will normally be a telephone interview, which acts as our guaranteed interview.


Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible to apply, you must meet our residency criteria. You must be a born or naturalised British citizen and one of your parents must be a British citizen or have substantial ties to the UK.

Candidates must normally have been resident in the UK for nine out of the last ten years. This is particularly important if you were born outside the UK. However, we will still consider you if you’ve 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.

Due to vetting requirements, you will need to be 18 years old, or above, to apply. Your application may take around nine months to process.

We particularly welcome applications from women and Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic candidates.

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 a close family member.