Summer Intelligence Internship

About the internship

Our paid Summer Intelligence Internship is a great opportunity to learn what it’s like inside the UK’s Intelligence Services. You'll gain skills for life, see how we conduct operations and explore if a career in intelligence is for you.

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What do we look for?

We need people from a range of backgrounds with different skills, knowledge, and perspectives. Applicants must be in their penultimate or final year of university, from a Black, Asian, mixed heritage, or ethnic minority background, and a lower socio-economic background. We’re confining the applications for this internship to those within this demographic due to a current underrepresentation in our workforce. Not sure if that’s you? Read below for a full breakdown.

You are from one of the following Black, Asian, mixed heritage or other ethnic minority backgrounds:

Asian or Asian British: Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Chinese or other Asian background
Black, Black British: Caribbean, African or any other Black background
Mixed-heritage: White and Black Caribbean, White and Black African, White and Asian or any other mixed heritage
Other ethnic minority group
White other (for example, Romany Gypsy, Scottish Travellers, or Irish Travellers)

You are currently in the penultimate or final year of studies at university

We’re looking for people from a range of backgrounds and degree disciplines. As long as you are in your penultimate or final year of studies at university, and meet the other criteria, you can apply.

At age 14, the main/highest income earner in your household was not self-employed and not in senior management and employed in one of the following categories:

Technical and craft occupations (for example: motor mechanic, fitter, inspector, plumber, printer, tool maker, electrician, gardener, train driver.
Routine, semi-routine manual and service occupations (for example: postal worker, machine operative, security guard, caretaker, farm worker, catering assistant (eg. restaurant/takeaway), sales assistant (eg. retail), HGV/bus/taxi/minicab driver, cleaner, porter, packer, labourer, waiter/waitress, bar staff.
Unemployed, but seeking work

or

If you finished school after 1980, were you eligible for free school meals as a statutory benefit at any point during your school years? (Does not include meals received through other means, eg. boarding school)

You are a British citizen or hold dual British nationality

To be eligible to apply, you must be a British citizen. If you hold dual nationality, of which one component is British, you will nonetheless be considered. Candidates must normally have been resident in the UK for seven out of the last ten years. This is particularly important if you were born outside the UK. Further information on our eligibility criteria is available.

We’re after inquisitive problem solvers with real enthusiasm, team spirit and a love of learning; individuals who enjoy collaboration and want to make a positive impact. Whatever your background, you’ll find a place for your skills. You’ll be encouraged to get involved, share your insights, and help us see things differently. 

The Internship with MI6

Over 11 weeks and two days with MI6, you’ll be supported by a dedicated internship manager 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 or a requirements perspective. More importantly you’ll see the human side of how we operate in all strands of our work. You’ll also be given the opportunity to see and experience our training. If you choose to make an application for employment following the internship, then you’ll need to go through a competitive selection process in order to join us as an employee.

Dates: 11 June 2026 to 28 August 2026 (11 weeks and two days)

What will I get?

As well as an experience you won’t get anywhere else, you’ll receive an internship payment as outlined below.

Payment	Duration	Location
£7,395.85	11 weeks and 2 days	London

You'll also receive five paid days off that you can use during the internship.

For successful candidates who don’t live within a reasonable commutable distance, we’ll also provide free accommodation for the duration of your internship, so you don’t need to live nearby to consider applying to us.

We value our interns

Our interns benefit from the support and guidance of colleagues across the organisation, playing an active role in our operations. The internship is designed to give an amazing insight to how we work. While with us, interns receive paid days off, plus a competitive internship payment.

With unprecedented exposure to the way we work, as well as our social societies, mentors, and affinity groups, you’ll get a realistic view of life at MI6. And at the end, you’ll have the opportunity to apply for employment if you wish to do so. You'll need to go through a competitive selection process if you apply to join us as an employee.

Do I need to get security clearance?

Everyone who is involved with us needs to go through a security clearance process, which we call vetting. It means you’ll have to tell us about you and your family. But don’t worry if you can’t answer all the questions, we understand families come in all forms, so if you can’t answer certain questions, that’s okay. You can find out more about vetting, and watch a video explaining it, on our Vetting page.