Intelligence Data Analyst
Department: Analysis
Location(s): Cheltenham, Manchester
Contract Type: Permanent
Hours of Work: During your initial training, you'll need to commit to full-time hours, Monday – Friday (37 hours per week). However, after this period you may be able to adjust your hours.
Salary: £34,663 (includes concessionary payment of £2,520)
Expected start dates: between May and October 2025
This role is fully office-based.
About Us
At GCHQ, we unlock the complex world of data and communications to keep the UK and its citizens safe, both in the real world and online. Working closely with our British Intelligence partners in MI5 and MI6, we protect the UK from threats including serious organised crime, terrorism, and cyber-attacks. A role in GCHQ means you’ll have varied and fascinating work in a supportive and encouraging environment that puts the emphasis on teamwork.
The Role
Analysts work at the very heart of our mission. You’ll support real-world events and have privileged insight - seeing behind the news headlines and contributing to work that really matters. Our analysts work in a rapidly changing technological environment, problem solving every day. No two days are the same here, but whatever the situation, you’ll be supported by your colleagues. You’ll work with bespoke technology, finding information from different places, including a high volume of data generated by many internet-connected devices. You’ll use your analytical skills to piece everything together and make sense of it.
You’ll be trusted to take real responsibility for your work and encouraged to try new things – there’s no set formula for analysis. The work is a mixture of short-term urgent situations and longer-term projects lasting months and sometimes even years. It’s a constant challenge to track adversaries and you’ll learn quickly about the technology they are using. Your analysis could help inform foreign policy, law enforcement and national security.
It may be possible to work reduced hours if you require. However, it’s advisable to be full-time during the initial training programme in order to absorb and consolidate your learning. If this does not sound feasible, we can discuss ways to support you during this period. We also offer flexible working hours, outside of classroom training times. Our normal working days are Monday to Friday. You would not be expected to work at weekends or to undertake shift work.
About You
We’re looking for people who enjoy making sense of complex information and doing challenging puzzles. Sometimes the outcome is not what you want but there’s always something that can be learned – so you’ll need resilience and perseverance. You’ll be keen to learn new things and be interested in new technologies, though we don’t expect you to have a technical background. We have a welcoming and supportive environment. We want a mix of minds, including people of all ages and backgrounds from across our society, who can see and understand things from different perspectives. It’s not as formal or secretive as you might think.
This role is open to those with or without a degree. All you need is a Level 2 (GCSE-or-equivalent) qualification in English Language and Maths at Grade 4/C or above - it’s your skills and mindset that are key. If you do have a degree or another higher qualification, you can still apply and you’ll be just as engaged with exciting work you’ll not find anywhere else – your qualifications are just the starting point!
Key skills and mindset are:
- Problem solving
- Persistence
- Resilience
- Inquisitiveness
- An interest in technology (and the future evolution of communications technology)
- Keen to learn new things
- Ability to work collaboratively with others and share knowledge
Training and Development
We have an excellent bespoke training and development programme, where you’ll learn alongside other new analysts in a classroom setting and in the workplace. You’ll be guided by knowledgeable tutors and supported by analyst mentors every step of the way. In the workplace you’ll soon be dealing with real life problems with support from colleagues too. Continuous professional development is a key aspect of the analyst role.
Rewards and Benefits
You’ll receive a starting salary of £32,092 plus other benefits including:
25 Days Annual Leave automatically rising to 30 days after 5 years’ service, and an additional 10.5 days public and privilege holidays
Opportunities to be recognised through our employee performance scheme
Opportunities to work flexibly, subject to business needs
Interest-free season ticket loan
Excellent pension scheme
Cycle to work scheme
Facilities such as a subsidised gym and restaurant, and on-site coffee bars at some locations
Paid parental and adoption leave
Equal Opportunities
At GCHQ 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 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.
We’re Disability Confident
GCHQ 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 offer a person-to-person interview to any candidate who self-identifies as disabled and meets the essential criteria for the role. This is our ‘Offer of Interview’ (OOI). To secure an interview for this vacancy, the essential criteria (in order of application process) are:
We require you to hold a GCSE (or equivalent Level 2 qualification) in English Language and Maths at Grade 4/C or above
You will need to pass our assessment sift of two questions on the application form
You will also need to pass our online bespoke analysis tests prior to being invited to interview
What to Expect
Our recruitment process is fair, transparent, and based on merit. Here is a brief overview of each stage, in order:
An initial, short online analysis test
A sift assessing answers to two questions on the application form. (Sifting is conducted without any knowledge of an applicant’s personal information)
An online bespoke analysis test
Virtual interview
Please note, you must successfully pass each stage of the process 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 job offer.
Before You Apply
To work at GCHQ you need to be a British citizen or hold dual British nationality. You can read our full eligibility criteria here.
This role requires 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.
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.
The role is based in Cheltenham, so you’ll need to live within a commutable distance. Please consider any financial implications and practicalities before submitting an application, as we do not offer relocation costs.
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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