When Susannah was young she dreamt of becoming a spy — she was attracted by the mystery and glamour of James Bond’s world, the idea of protecting her country and by the prospect of uncovering secrets.

Now, at 28, she has gone some way to realising her dream. She works for the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), one of the intelligence agencies, in Cheltenham. Susannah (we are not allowed to know her surname) is an intelligence analyst in GCHQ’s cryptanalysis (codebreaking) area.

“I had always thought about the intelligence agencies as a career,” she says. “You know it’s a desk job, but the glamorous James Bond side of it attracts you to look into it a bit more.

“I cannot really go into what being an analyst in the crypt area means on a day to day basis. It involves dealing with analytical problems, liaising with people internally and externally, monitoring things, using lots of tools and databases and looking for patterns.

“It’s not true that with the end of the Cold War there is less need for encryption — with the internet now so much stuff is encrypted.”

A graduate with an BSc in cognitive science (psychology and computer science) and an MSc in social anthropology, Susannah dabbled with journalism, tax advising (Ernst & Young) and working for the British Council, before joining GCHQ nearly two years ago as an intelligence analyst.

“I first applied while doing the masters and did not get through. When I saw GCHQ was recruiting again, I gave it another shot,” she says.

“It’s quite a long selection process. I applied online. I had a day of interviews and psychometric tests and another day of group exercises. You then have to be vetted. The whole process took a year from applying to walking through the door.

“Intelligence analyst is a very general term, Until you arrive you don’t really know what you are going to be doing. But it’s not like Spooks (the television series), I’m afraid – it’s just a desk job.”

Having said that, she has to be discreet. “I have to keep a low profile outside work. I cannot talk about my work – that was quite hard at the beginning. And I only talk to colleagues on a need-to-know basis.

“However, it’s important for people in other areas of GCHQ to understand what we do, so we give lots of talks internally. You just have to be aware of what you can or cannot say.

“It’s nice knowing that you are helping in some small way to protect the UK. It’s a relaxed atmosphere and I enjoy working with a team.

“If you have an open mind and are prepared to do different, varied work every day, I think you would be happy here. It is fascinating. I enjoy every day. Just writing Top Secret on my files still gives me a little buzz.”

Maths not essential

One misconception about GCHQ is that everyone it employs must be a top-flight mathematician or linguist, Simon Midgley writes.

In fact there are plenty of jobs where such specific skills are not essential, including roles in IT, engineering, information services and corporate support (including contracts, purchasing and administration).

GCHQ also has roles focusing on the internet. Candidates need a relevant 2:2 degree and a deep interest in computers.

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