Network Engineer

Equal Opportunities
At 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 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:
https://www.SIS.gov.uk/explore-careers.html 

We’re Disability Confident
MI6 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: 

• CCNA or a relevant higher education qualification/equivalent experience with Cisco networking (assessed at application sift)
• Awareness/experience in using a variety of networking tools and technologies (assessed at application sift) including but not limited to:
  • Layer 2 including VLANs and STP
  • Layer 3 including IP addressing, subnetting and OSPF
  • Network services including NTP, DHCP, DNS and NAT
  • Network security including firewalls, VPNs, GRE/IPsec and ACLs
  • Motivation for applying to work at MI6 as a Network Engineer (assessed at application sift)

Eligibility Questions: you’ll be asked a series of questions relating to this vacancy. If you meet the criteria here, you’ll be invited to complete an initial application. 

Assessments: you’ll be required to reach the pass mark set for the technical questions and your suitability for operational deployment tests which looks at your ability to work with others, and use your technical knowledge and dexterity to problem-solve.  

What to Expect
Our recruitment process is fair, transparent, and based on merit. Here is a brief overview of each stage, in order:

•    If you meet the eligibility criteria you’ll be invited to upload your CV and complete an online application form.  You’ll then be invited to complete an online technical exam.  This will form the application sift. 
•    If successful, you’ll be invited to an in person assessment centre which will consist of two parts.  The first part of the assessment centre will consist of undertaking in-person written and verbal technical tests.  You’ll need to pass the technical interview to be invited to the second part of the assessment centre.
•    If successful you’ll be invited to the second part of the assessment centre which will be a competency based interview which will also explore your motivation to work at MI6.
•    If successful, you’ll receive a conditional offer of employment, subject to vetting.

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 job offer.

Before You Apply
To work at MI6, 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 London, so you’ll need to live within a commutable distance. Please consider any financial implications and practicalities before submitting an application. A loan is available to support people relocating to London.

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.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.