MI5 Assessment Tests

MI5 Situational Judgement Test

1. Question 1 of 10

   You are a training school assistant at MI5, and you hold the bookings for a course that runs three times a year. The stated rule is that a place moves to a later run only if the request arrives before the list closes. The list closed on Monday. Two people asked to move afterwards and you told both of them no. A third person now asks, points out that the next run has spaces, and says that the list is still open on your screen and nobody else would ever know. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Move them onto the next run and agree with them to keep it between the two of you, since that run has spaces, the move costs nobody anything and the two earlier refusals need never come into it.
   2. Tell them no for the same reason you gave the other two, explain when the list opens for the following run, and offer to flag their request to the person who runs the course the moment it does.
   3. Move them onto the next run and go back to the two you refused to offer them the same move, so that everybody who asked after Monday is treated the same way in the end.
   4. Ask the person who runs the course whether the rule can be set aside for this run, and tell the person asking that you will come back to them once you have an answer.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: B. Tell them no for the same reason you gave the other two, explain when the list opens for the following run, and offer to flag their request to the person who runs the course the moment it does.

   Least effective: A. Move them onto the next run and agree with them to keep it between the two of you, since that run has spaces, the move costs nobody anything and the two earlier refusals need never come into it.

   A: Agrees to an exception that depends on nobody knowing: two people were told no under the same rule this week, and an arrangement you could not repeat to either of them is one you cannot defend at all.

   C: Widens a breach in order to make it even: the rule was applied correctly on Monday, the two refusals were right when they were made, and nothing in this request is a reason to reopen a closed list.

   D: Escalates a question the rule has already answered: the list closed on Monday, two people have been refused on that basis, and any relaxation granted now would have to be offered back to them.

   The most effective response is telling them no for the same reason you gave the other two, explaining when the list opens for the following run, and offering to flag their request to the person who runs the course as soon as it does. Consistency is the whole of the judgement here, and the offer gives the person something real without touching the rule. That is better than moving them and going back to the two you refused, because it treats a rule that was applied correctly on Monday as the thing that needs fixing. It is better than asking whether the rule can be set aside for this run, because the list has already closed and any relaxation would owe the two refused people the same offer. The least effective response is moving them and agreeing to keep it between the two of you: reopening it for everybody at least applies one standard to all three, and asking for the rule to be relaxed at least puts the question where people can see it, whereas a private exception is one you could not repeat to the two people you turned down. The principle: an exception you would have to keep quiet is the test that tells you it is not an exception you can make.

2. Question 2 of 10

   You are a duty team member at MI5. Last Friday the person who runs your team asked a colleague to prepare the handover notes for a matter your team is dealing with, due to the incoming team at 6am on Monday. It is Sunday evening. The colleague mentioned in passing on Friday that they had not started, and has been off since. Nobody else knows, and the person who runs your team is off until Monday morning but has said to ring at any hour if something cannot wait. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Assume the colleague finished the notes before going off, since they knew the deadline, and leave Monday morning to sort itself out if anything is actually missing.
   2. Ring the person who runs your team tonight, tell them the notes may not exist, and offer to draft what you can from the log so the incoming team is not left with nothing at 6am.
   3. Try to reach the colleague at home this evening on every number you have, and if they answer ask them to finish the notes tonight, saying nothing to anybody else since the notes were theirs to write on Friday.
   4. Write the handover notes yourself tonight as best you can from the log and the shift records, and hand them over in person at 6am without raising with anybody that the work assigned on Friday was never begun.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: B. Ring the person who runs your team tonight, tell them the notes may not exist, and offer to draft what you can from the log so the incoming team is not left with nothing at 6am.

   Least effective: A. Assume the colleague finished the notes before going off, since they knew the deadline, and leave Monday morning to sort itself out if anything is actually missing.

   A: Assumes somebody else has it: the only evidence you hold points the other way, you are the sole person holding it, and Sunday evening is the last point at which anything can be done before 6am.

   C: Delays the escalation: the colleague has been unreachable since Friday, so the evening can pass with no reply at all and the only person who could arrange cover finds out at 6am.

   D: Absorbs the failure silently: the incoming team gets something, but nobody who owns the work learns that the notes were never started, so the same gap is set up for the next handover.

   The most effective response is to ring the person who runs your team tonight and offer to draft what you can from the log: they said to ring at any hour, they are the only person who can arrange cover, and the offer means the 6am handover is not empty either way. That is better than trying to reach the colleague at home and telling nobody else until you have an answer, because the colleague has been unreachable since Friday and the evening can run out with the one person who could act still unaware. It is also better than writing the notes yourself and handing them over at 6am with nothing said, since that covers tonight but leaves the person running the team believing an instruction was carried out when it never was. The least effective response is to assume the colleague finished the notes before going off: the only thing you were actually told is that they had not started, so the assumption runs against your own evidence and burns the last evening in which anybody could have fixed it. The principle: when you are the only person holding a risk, tell the person who can act on it while they can still act.

3. Question 3 of 10

   You are a candidate liaison assistant at MI5. An applicant telephones to ask why she was not put through to the next stage and how she was scored. The stated rule is that scores are released only in the written feedback the selection team sends, which takes ten working days. She says she has another application closing on Friday and needs to know what to work on. Her scores are on the screen in front of you. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Take her number and offer to ring her back once the written feedback has been sent in ten working days, which is the point at which you will be able to talk her through the scores line by line.
   2. Tell her there is nothing on file beyond the written feedback she will be sent, and that everybody at her stage receives the same, so that she stops asking about the scores.
   3. Explain the ten working day rule and that it applies to every applicant, say you cannot help further, and end the call politely, since the rule is clear and the selection team is the only route to her scores.
   4. Explain that the scores come only in the written feedback and when it is due, ask the selection team today whether anything can be given sooner given her Friday date, and ring her back either way.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: D. Explain that the scores come only in the written feedback and when it is due, ask the selection team today whether anything can be given sooner given her Friday date, and ring her back either way.

   Least effective: B. Tell her there is nothing on file beyond the written feedback she will be sent, and that everybody at her stage receives the same, so that she stops asking about the scores.

   A: Ignores the deadline she has told you about: ten working days lands well after Friday, so the call she is offered arrives when it can no longer help her.

   B: Denies information you are holding: her scores are on the screen as you speak, and she is being told they do not exist in order to end an awkward call.

   C: Stops at the rule: it is true and it is not the whole answer, because nobody has asked the selection team whether her Friday date changes anything.

   The most effective response is to explain when the written feedback is due, ask the selection team today whether anything can be given sooner in light of her Friday date, and ring her back either way: it keeps the release rule where it belongs, with the team that owns it, and still puts her actual deadline in front of somebody who could act on it. It is stronger than taking her number and offering a call after the feedback is sent, because ten working days lands after Friday and the offer is worth nothing to her. It is stronger than explaining the rule and ending the call, because that is accurate and incurious: nobody has been asked whether her date makes any difference. The least effective response is to tell her there is nothing on file beyond the written feedback and that everybody at her stage receives the same: the delayed callback at least keeps the door open, and the polite refusal at least tells her the truth about the rule, whereas denying that the scores exist while looking at them is untrue and leaves her working on the wrong thing before Friday. The principle: a rule you cannot bend is still explained honestly, and somebody else’s deadline is worth one question to the people who own the decision.

4. Question 4 of 10

   You are a correspondence assistant at MI5. The provider that prints and posts your standard letters has emailed your team to say that a batch of 400 letters sent last Tuesday carried the wrong return address, so no reply can reach you. Its email is marked as not to be circulated outside your team. None of the 400 people has been told, several have deadlines for replying, and your team meets tomorrow afternoon. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Wait for tomorrow afternoon's team meeting to raise it, so the team can agree one version of what happened before anything goes out to the people who wrote in.
   2. Email the provider first to ask how the wrong address got onto the batch and what it intends to do about it, and hold off telling anybody else until its answer comes back.
   3. Set out for your supervisor today what went wrong, how many people are affected and what you suggest they are told, so that a correction can go out before their deadlines pass.
   4. Forward the provider's whole email, including the part marked as not for circulation outside your team, to everybody on the standing distribution list so they can see the position for themselves.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Set out for your supervisor today what went wrong, how many people are affected and what you suggest they are told, so that a correction can go out before their deadlines pass.

   Least effective: D. Forward the provider's whole email, including the part marked as not for circulation outside your team, to everybody on the standing distribution list so they can see the position for themselves.

   A: Delays the decision: agreement on wording is worth a day only if nobody is losing a deadline, and several of the 400 are, so the wait is bought from them.

   B: Chases the cause before the consequence: how it happened does not change what the 400 people need to know today, and the provider sets your timetable rather than the deadlines do.

   D: Breaches a stated confidence: the email says on its face that it is not to go outside the team, and circulating it wholesale still tells none of the 400 people waiting on a reply.

   The most effective response is setting out for your supervisor today what went wrong, how many people are affected and what you suggest they are told. The people who wrote in have deadlines, only somebody above you can authorise a correction, and a short written account today is what lets that happen before the deadlines pass. It beats waiting for tomorrow afternoon’s meeting to agree one version, because a day of agreed wording costs the people who are running out of time. It beats emailing the provider first to ask how the address got onto the batch, because the cause does not change what those people need to know now. The least effective response is forwarding the provider’s whole email to everybody on the distribution list, including the part marked as not for circulation: it breaks a stated confidence, which neither of the other two does, and it still leaves all 400 people uninformed, so it pays a real cost and buys nothing. It is worse than the wait for the meeting and worse than the query to the provider because both of those are slow, while this one is slow and breaks a rule as well. The principle: tell the people who are relying on the outcome, through the person who can authorise it, and keep to the handling the correspondence itself sets out.

5. Question 5 of 10

   You are a public liaison assistant at MI5. Six weeks ago a community group sent in a written offer to host an open evening, and the standard reply says an acknowledgement will be sent within twenty working days. That date passed nine days ago. The group’s secretary rings you this morning, polite but clearly fed up, and says she has heard nothing at all. You can see the offer sitting unallocated in the shared inbox, and the person who decides on open evenings is back on Thursday. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Apologise on the call and promise the secretary a decision by Friday, since the person who decides is back on Thursday and the offer will be at the top of their list.
   2. Apologise on the call, send the written acknowledgement today with the delay explained, and tell her the offer goes to the person deciding on Thursday and when to expect an answer.
   3. Explain that the offer is waiting for one person who is back on Thursday, and ask her to ring again after that if she has still not had anything in writing.
   4. Pass her enquiry on to the team that owns the shared inbox, tell her they will be in touch, and take the call as dealt with for your own part.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: B. Apologise on the call, send the written acknowledgement today with the delay explained, and tell her the offer goes to the person deciding on Thursday and when to expect an answer.

   Least effective: D. Pass her enquiry on to the team that owns the shared inbox, tell her they will be in touch, and take the call as dealt with for your own part.

   A: Over-promises: nothing you can see guarantees a decision by Friday, so a group that has already been let down once by a stated date is given a second one you do not control.

   C: Puts the chasing back on the customer: she has already waited nine days past a date the organisation set, and the effort of following it up stays with the person who did nothing wrong.

   D: Passes the problem on without owning it: the offer is already sitting unallocated, which is precisely why no acknowledgement was sent, so moving it back into the same inbox repeats the failure she rang about.

   The most effective response is to apologise, send the written acknowledgement today with the delay explained, and tell her when to expect an answer: the missed date is put right immediately by the person she has actually reached, and she leaves the call with something in writing and a realistic next step. That is better than promising a decision by Friday, because nothing you can see makes Friday certain and a second broken date costs far more than the first. It is also better than explaining that the offer is waiting for somebody back on Thursday and asking her to ring again, since the chasing is handed back to the person who has already waited nine days past a date the organisation itself set. The least effective response is to pass her enquiry on to the team that owns the shared inbox and treat the call as dealt with: the offer is unallocated in that very inbox, which is why no acknowledgement went out, so the enquiry returns to the place that failed her and nobody has picked it up. The principle: when a service standard has already been missed, the person who takes the call owns putting it right.

6. Question 6 of 10

   You are a duty team member at MI5. Your supervisor has asked you to rewrite the whole of last week’s handover notes by tomorrow morning and has given no reason for it. The notes looked fine to you, the work will take most of a day, and you already have a report due on Friday that she is expecting. A colleague on the same shift asks why you look so fed up. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Ask the supervisor what the rewritten notes are needed for and by when, and tell her that Friday's report will slip if the notes take a full day.
   2. Criticise the request to the rest of the shift, saying the supervisor never explains herself and hands out pointless work, rather than asking her what the notes are for.
   3. Rewrite all of last week's notes tonight and hand Friday's report in late, on the basis that the supervisor asked for the notes and she can sort the report out afterwards.
   4. Rewrite the parts of the notes you think were weak, leave the rest as they are, and hand them in tomorrow without saying which parts you changed.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Ask the supervisor what the rewritten notes are needed for and by when, and tell her that Friday's report will slip if the notes take a full day.

   Least effective: B. Criticise the request to the rest of the shift, saying the supervisor never explains herself and hands out pointless work, rather than asking her what the notes are for.

   B: Personalises the frustration: the shift ends up with a view of the supervisor instead of an answer, the notes are still due tomorrow, and the one person who knows what they are for has not been asked.

   C: Abandons your own committed work: the report is due on Friday and is expected, so a second deadline is quietly broken to protect the first without anybody being told.

   D: Substitutes your own judgement for the supervisor's: you do not know what the rewrite is for, so guessing at which parts matter risks handing back exactly the pages she needed done.

   The most effective response is asking the supervisor what the rewritten notes are needed for and telling her that Friday’s report will slip. One question turns an unexplained task into a job you can size, and the person who set both deadlines is the only one who can choose between them. That is better than rewriting everything tonight and handing the report in late, because that quietly breaks a deadline she is expecting you to meet and she never gets the chance to move it. It is also better than rewriting only the parts you think were weak, since without knowing the purpose you may leave undone the very pages the rewrite exists for. The least effective response is criticising the request to the rest of the shift: it turns a question about the work into a verdict on a colleague, spreads it through the team, and leaves both the notes and Friday’s report exactly where they were, which is worse than doing too much or doing the wrong half. The principle: when a task arrives without a reason, ask the person who set it before you judge either the task or them.

7. Question 7 of 10

   You are a property store assistant at MI5. You have finished the monthly count of the radios and hand tools in the store, and the total is three short of the register. The written process says any difference between the count and the register is written up and sent to the person who owns the register before the count is signed off, whatever its size. Three items out of nine hundred is the smallest gap the store has had this year, and the sign-off is due tomorrow. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Leave the count unsigned and pass the discrepancy to your supervisor to write up, since three items is their call rather than yours and they know the register better than you do.
   2. Write up the difference of three items today, send it to the person who owns the register before the sign-off, and recount the shelves those items sit on while there is still time.
   3. Recount the whole store tomorrow morning before signing off, and write up the difference only if the second count still comes out three short of the register.
   4. Ask the two people who signed items out this month to check their own kit, then write the difference up tomorrow once they have both replied, since their answer may explain all three of them.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: B. Write up the difference of three items today, send it to the person who owns the register before the sign-off, and recount the shelves those items sit on while there is still time.

   Least effective: A. Leave the count unsigned and pass the discrepancy to your supervisor to write up, since three items is their call rather than yours and they know the register better than you do.

   A: Passes ownership of your own count: the process puts the write-up with the person who did the counting, and handing it upward the day before sign-off buys nobody any time.

   C: Delays the report past its deadline: the process wants the write-up before the sign-off, and a second count tomorrow morning leaves no room for the register owner to do anything with it.

   D: Waits on other people before reporting: what two colleagues remember is not a count, and the process wants the write-up with the register owner before a sign-off that falls tomorrow.

   The most effective response is to write up the difference of three items today, send it to the person who owns the register before the sign-off, and recount the shelves those items sit on while there is still time: the written process says every difference is written up whatever its size, the sign-off is tomorrow, and a recount now either closes the gap or confirms it. It is better than recounting the whole store tomorrow morning and writing up the difference only if the second count still comes out short, because the report is due before the sign-off and a second count does not replace it. It is better than waiting on the two people who signed items out to check their own kit before writing anything up, because what they remember is not a count and the write-up is due before the sign-off. The least effective response is to leave the count unsigned and pass the discrepancy to your supervisor to write up: the counting was yours, the process puts the write-up with the person who did it, and moving it upward the day before sign-off gives the register owner less time, not more. The principle: a small difference is still a difference, and the person who counted is the person who reports it.

8. Question 8 of 10

   You are an enquiry desk assistant at MI5. Last week you and a colleague argued in front of the desk about which of you should have taken a long queue, and neither of you has mentioned it since. Today the person who builds the desk rota asks you, in confidence, how the two of you work together, because they are deciding who is paired with whom for the next three months and will act on what you say. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Describe the disagreement honestly, say it has not been talked about since, and tell the rota person that you would rather sort it out with the colleague directly before the pairs are set.
   2. Say the two of you work well enough together and leave last week out of it, since the argument was a one off and the rota person only needs to know whether you can share a desk.
   3. Say you would rather not answer, and suggest the rota person asks the colleague the same question, since it seems unfair to describe a disagreement only one of you is being asked about.
   4. Say there is a problem you would rather not describe, and hand it straight to the desk manager to deal with, since sorting out staff disagreements is their job.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: A. Describe the disagreement honestly, say it has not been talked about since, and tell the rota person that you would rather sort it out with the colleague directly before the pairs are set.

   Least effective: D. Say there is a problem you would rather not describe, and hand it straight to the desk manager to deal with, since sorting out staff disagreements is their job.

   B: Prioritises harmony over honesty: the rota person has said they will act on what you say, so a reassuring answer sets three months of pairings on a picture you know is incomplete.

   C: Steps back from a question only you were asked: fairness is met by saying what happened rather than by saying nothing, and the rota is set either way, with or without your account.

   D: Passes the problem on without owning it: a disagreement you have never raised with the colleague becomes something the manager has to take up formally, and the rota person is left with a flag and no account of it.

   The most effective response is describing the disagreement honestly and telling the rota person you would rather sort it out with the colleague directly. The rota person has said they will act on what you say, the argument happened in front of the desk and has never been talked about, and the only version of this that ends well is one the colleague hears from you first. It beats saying the two of you work well enough together and leaving last week out of it, because three months of pairings would then rest on a picture you know is incomplete. It beats declining to answer and suggesting they ask the colleague the same question, because the rota is set either way and your silence simply removes what you know from it. The least effective response is saying there is a problem you would rather not describe and handing it straight to the desk manager: it turns a disagreement the colleague has never heard raised into somebody else’s case to look into, and gives the rota person a flag without an account, which is a different kind of wrong from being too kind or too quiet. It is worse than the reassuring answer and worse than the refusal because both of those leave the disagreement where it can still be fixed between the two of you, while this one moves it to a manager who now has to act on something nobody has described. The principle: feedback that will be acted on is for describing what happened, not for handing an unraised disagreement to somebody else.

9. Question 9 of 10

   You are an enquiry desk assistant at MI5. You have promised eleven callers a reply before the desk closes at four, and you are halfway through the list. At two, the person who runs the department asks you to type up and circulate the notes from this morning’s briefing instead, saying it will take an hour. When you explain the eleven callers, they answer sharply that the notes matter more and walk off. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

   1. Type the notes up straight away and get through as many of the eleven replies as the remaining time allows, leaving whoever you do not reach to ring back tomorrow.
   2. Type the notes up, then stop taking anything beyond your own list after that exchange, and let the eleven callers wait rather than raise the clash with someone who spoke to you like that.
   3. Go back to the person who runs the department, say plainly that the notes will cost you the eleven promised replies, and ask which of the two they want by four.
   4. Carry on with the eleven replies and put the notes off until tomorrow morning, on the basis that a promise to a caller outranks an internal request made at short notice.
   Show the answer

   Most effective: C. Go back to the person who runs the department, say plainly that the notes will cost you the eleven promised replies, and ask which of the two they want by four.

   Least effective: B. Type the notes up, then stop taking anything beyond your own list after that exchange, and let the eleven callers wait rather than raise the clash with someone who spoke to you like that.

   A: Lets a promise lapse without a word: the callers who are not reached were given a time by you, and none of them learns before four that the reply is not coming.

   B: Withdraws help after a disagreement: the sharp answer is turned into a reason to stop cooperating, so eleven people who were promised a reply pay for a two minute exchange at the desk.

   D: Substitutes own judgement for the stakeholder's: the person who asked may well have a reason for wanting the notes circulated today, and they are never given the chance to weigh the eleven callers against it.

   The most effective response is to go back to the person who runs the department and ask which of the two they want by four: they made the request without knowing what it displaces, and two hours is still enough time for them to move one or the other. That is better than typing the notes and reaching as many replies as the time allows, because the callers who miss out were given a time by you and would hear nothing at all. It is also better than carrying on with the replies and putting the notes off until tomorrow, since that decides on the requester’s behalf without ever telling them the choice existed. The least effective response is to type the notes and then stop taking anything beyond your own list after that exchange: a sharp remark becomes a reason to withhold ordinary cooperation, and eleven callers who were promised a reply before four are the people who actually pay for it. The principle: when pressure lands badly, answer the work and not the tone, and put the clash back to the person who can settle it.

10. Question 10 of 10

    You are a contact handling assistant at MI5. A colleague on your desk has found that they were left off the list for the weekly handover meeting for the past two months, and has just told the person who keeps that list, in a raised voice, that it was done deliberately. The person who keeps the list says the name was lost when the list was rebuilt. Both have now asked you separately what you think, and the next handover is tomorrow. Which response below would be most effective, and which would be least effective?

    1. Put the name back on the list for tomorrow, check that nobody else was lost when the list was rebuilt, and leave the argument alone, on the basis that once the meeting invitation arrives the complaint goes away by itself.
    2. Say the same thing to each of them, since they asked separately: that you do not know how the name came off, that it can be put back before tomorrow, and offer both ten minutes with you today.
    3. Take it to your supervisor this afternoon and ask them to decide who is right, setting out what each of them has told you separately, since two people on the desk are now not speaking and the handover is tomorrow morning.
    4. Agree with your colleague that they were pushed out on purpose, and say so at the desk in front of the other colleagues, so that the person who keeps the list hears how it looked.
    Show the answer

    Most effective: B. Say the same thing to each of them, since they asked separately: that you do not know how the name came off, that it can be put back before tomorrow, and offer both ten minutes with you today.

    Least effective: D. Agree with your colleague that they were pushed out on purpose, and say so at the desk in front of the other colleagues, so that the person who keeps the list hears how it looked.

    A: Fixes the diary and leaves the grievance: the invitation settles nothing about whether it was deliberate, and the two of them still have to work the same desk tomorrow.

    C: Escalates before the two people have spoken: there is nothing yet for a supervisor to weigh, and a ruling handed down will not make either of them trust the other.

    D: Personalises the conflict: you do not know that it was deliberate, and saying it publicly turns an oversight one conversation could settle into a charge the other person now has to defend.

    The most effective response is to say the same thing to each of them, that you do not know how the name came off, that it can be put back before tomorrow, and offer to sit with both of them for ten minutes today: you were asked separately, saying the same thing to each is what stops a second version forming, and ten minutes with the two of them is the only route to an account they share before the handover. It is better than putting the name back on the list and leaving the argument alone, because the invitation fixes the diary and not the accusation. It is better than taking it to your supervisor to decide who is right, because nothing has yet been said between the two people involved for anybody to rule on. The least effective response is to agree with your colleague that they were pushed out on purpose and say so at the desk in front of the other colleagues: you do not know that, and saying it publicly hardens an oversight into an accusation with witnesses. The principle: in a dispute you did not see, hold to what you actually know and get the two people into the same conversation.