Job Description

In addition to a competitive salary, you might also be eligible for extra allowances depending on the organisation you join. These could include bonuses for particular skills or the chance to earn language-related allowances once you're in the role.

Flexible working:

This is an office-based role, and while our work is primarily carried out on-site, we understand the importance of maintaining a healthy work-life balance. That's why we offer a variety of flexible working options, including part-time working arrangements, compressed hours, and other supportive work patterns to help meet your needs.


To find out more about flexible working, please visit our websites: MI5, MI6

About us

MI5 and MI6 are part of the UK's Intelligence Services. We work together to safeguard Britain's people, interests, and businesses from various threats at home, overseas and online, including cyber-attacks, espionage, terrorism, and organised crime. Working across our vital missions, you'll make a real impact at the heart of national security, all within a supportive and inclusive environment where everyone can thrive.

The role

As an Arabic Language Specialist at MI5 and MI6, you'll provide linguistic and cultural expertise that helps shape operations. In this role, you'll do more than translations and transcriptions. Working as part of a multidisciplinary team, you'll piece together Arabic language materials, produce reports, and unlock intelligence that drives real-world operations. In short, you'll have considerable influence as you listen to, read, or view materials in Arabic and provide context that we wouldn't otherwise understand.


You'll triage, process, and analyse foreign language content, using your cultural and linguistic expertise to provide vital context through briefings to teams, specialist personnel, and analysts. Alongside this, you may occasionally take on interpreting assignments outside of the office, where you'll be fully supported with all the information and guidance you need to feel confident and prepared. You'll also play a key role in developing our language capabilities, whether by supporting new initiatives or helping advance language technology tools and AI. As our needs evolve, you'll help ensure we're equipped to deliver effective, forward-thinking solutions.


Plus, you'll have the opportunity to explore a range of analytical tools and receive training to support and enhance your work. Within our welcoming and collaborative language community, you'll find plenty of opportunities to grow your skills. While you'll often work independently, you'll be surrounded by colleagues who are ready to support you, share insights, and explore new ways of working together.


Please note: There may be opportunities to travel within the UK or overseas as part of this role, depending on business requirements. We'll always take your responsibilities outside of work into account when considering deployments, and we'll work with you to ensure it's right for you.

About you

You don't need any previous experience or a formal qualification in Arabic Language to apply to become an Arabic Language Specialist with us. However, you will need proficiency in Arabic to at least C1 level of the CEFR across all disciplines: reading, writing, speaking, and listening (see explanation below). This should be supported by solid cultural knowledge of the language, including the countries and regions where Arabic is spoken, covering aspects such as culture, history, religion, and politics. You'll also be able to write and translate Arabic language materials into grammatically correct English, supported by an English Language GCSE at C/4 or above (or an equivalent qualification). Your proficiency in Arabic may come from growing up in a multilingual family, studying Arabic to a high academic level, or through comparable experience.


At C1 level or higher, you're able to:

Understand a wide range of longer and more demanding texts and conversations Express ideas fluently without excessive searching for words Use the language effectively in social, academic, or professional situations Produce well-structured, detailed texts on complex topics

You can also access the CEFR self-assessment grid for more information on our requirements.


As an inquisitive problem-solver, you'll delve into information and find relevant intelligence others might miss. You'll ask questions and seek to unlock the bigger picture and enjoy working as part of a team. Organised, resilient and able to prioritise tasks as necessary, you'll remain calm under pressure. Importantly, you'll be a confident communicator capable of preparing and presenting reports and briefings to colleagues and stakeholders who may not share your language or cultural knowledge.

Training and development

On joining either MI6 or MI5, you'll undertake structured initial training to understand the organisation, its mission, and the tools and systems you'll be using. You'll be assigned a mentor or development partner to support your transition. At MI5, this includes a dedicated partner for your first year, and at both organisations, you'll also receive guidance from your line manager.


You'll attend briefings and team meetings to understand your mission area and how your role contributes across either organisation. Both organisations offer a range of opportunities to develop your language skills including maintenance classes, immersion experiences and dialect training based on business need. You may also gain in-house or external language qualifications.


MI5 provides a clear pathway via the Language Capability Framework and opportunities to lead or contribute to projects. At MI6, your first three years will be spent in a dedicated role with mentoring support. You'll then have the opportunity to specialise further in the language profession or explore other roles that broaden your experience, while continuing to draw on your linguistic and foreign expertise in combination with other operational skillsets.


We also welcome training and development suggestions from colleagues and will endeavour to support them where relevant.

Rewards and benefits

You'll receive a starting salary of 39,152 to 48,818 depending on the agency you join, with the potential to qualify for additional language allowances based on your proficiency level and how your language skills are applied in your work.


Other benefits include:

25 days' annual leave, automatically rising to 30 days after 5 years' service, plus an additional 10.5 days' public and privilege holidays Opportunities to be recognised through our employee performance scheme Personal learning budget (MI5 only) Opportunities to work flexibly, subject to business needs Excellent pension scheme Cycle to work scheme Facilities such as a gym and restaurant, and on-site coffee bars Paid parental and adoption leave

Equal opportunities

At MI5 and 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: individuals 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, individuals from ethnic minority backgrounds, people with disabilities, and those from low socio-economic backgrounds.


Find out more about our culture, working environment, and commitment to diversity on our websites:


MI5


MI6

We're Disability Confident

MI5 and MI6 are proud to have achieved Leader status within the Department for Work and Pensions' Disability Confident scheme. This initiative encourages employers to think differently about disability and take action to improve how they recruit, retain, and develop disabled people. As a Disability Confident leader, we aim to ensure that a fair and proportionate number of disabled applicants who best meet the essential minimum criteria for this position will be offered an interview if it is practical for us to do so. (This is known as the Offer of an Interview.) To be considered under this scheme, applicants must meet the following minimum criteria, with motivation and commitment assessed at application form sift. You must:

Demonstrate a motivation and commitment to work for the UK intelligence agencies, assessed at the application form sift Achieve a pass in the Arabic language tests Have English Language GCSE at grade C/4 or above (or an equivalent qualification) to support written translation work.

There is a wide range of extra support available throughout the recruitment process to enable you to do your best, see our websites for information on the reasonable adjustments we can offer:


MI5


MI6

What to expect

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

Initial application and eligibility sift In-person language tests in London An in-person interview and assessment centre in London

You may also be required to undergo a hearing test for this role.


Please note that you must successfully pass each stage of the process to progress to the next. Your application may take around 9 to 12 months to process, including vetting, so we advise you to continue any current employment until you have received your final job offer. We regret that we are unable to reimburse travel expenses.


Please note that all our contracts include a mobility clause. This means you could be required to work away from your usual place of work for periods of detached duty or training.

Before you apply

To work at MI5 or MI6, you'll need to be a British citizen or hold dual British nationality. You can read our full eligibility criteria on our websites:


MI5


MI6


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 on our websites:


MI5


MI6


Please note we have a strict drugs policy. Once you start your application, you must not take any recreational drugs, and you'll be required to declare any previous drug usage at the relevant stage.


Before you apply, we advise you to consider setting up a separate email address for your contact with us to ensure your personal and application correspondence remain separate. Try to avoid including identifying features in your email address, such as your first and/or surname and date of birth. This is good practice and will help you to manage your application more securely.


The MI5 and MI6 roles are based in London, so you'll need to live within a commutable distance. Please consider any financial implications and practicalities before submitting an application. An interest-free loan via our benevolent fund is available at MI5 for those relocating into privately rented accommodation to take up the offer of employment.


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 begin your application. Applying from outside the UK will impact 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 reserve 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. To avoid disappointment, we encourage you to submit your application at your earliest convenience.