Software Engineer Intern (Recommendation Architecture, Feeds Infrastructure) - 2027 Fall

The job

LIVE Live feed (private-sector employer) Source: The Muse public API · Data: listed 2026-08-21

Job description

Responsibilities

About the Team
The TikTok Video team works on the systems behind the For You Feed, TikTok's personalized recommendation experience. We operate at the intersection of machine learning and large-scale systems, designing and operating the end-to-end pipeline -from offline training data orchestration to real-time online inference-that delivers seamless, high-frequency discovery to over a billion users.

We are looking for talented individuals to join us for an internship. Our internship program offers students hands-on experience, industry exposure, and opportunities to apply their knowledge to real-world challenges while building a strong foundation for personal and professional growth.
Interns will gain practical experience, explore potential career paths, and participate in social events, learning programs, and development workshops alongside industry professionals.
Candidates may apply to a maximum of two positions across Our Company and its affiliates globally. Applications will be considered in the order they are submitted.
Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis, so we encourage you to apply early. Please clearly state your availability in your resume, including your start and end dates.

Candidates who pass resume screening will be invited to participate in Our Company's technical online assessment.

Responsibilities
- Build globalized large-scale recommendation system;
- Build extremely efficient and reliable data pipelines for candidates generation, ranking system, profile generation, training examples generation, realtime online training, etc;
- Coach AI to perform release process and production operations, including online anomaly detection and diagnose, release safeguards, etc.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualification(s)
- Currently pursuing a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or a related technical discipline.
- Experience in programming, included but not limited to the following programming languages: C, C++, Java or Golang;
- Effective communication skills and a sense of ownership and drive.

Preferred Qualification(s)
- Currently pursuing a Master's degree in Computer Science or a related technical discipline.
- Experience in AI coding is a plus.

Explore around this job

Field: Technology Sub-niche: Software engineering All jobs at TikTok Jobs in California Jobs in San Jose, CA San Jose city guide California state guide Santa Clara County economy

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About the role

This is a Internship role in the Technology field (Software engineering) at TikTok. An internship is a short, structured role for students or people changing field; it usually pays less than a permanent job and is meant to teach the work.

We could not match this job title to one occupation in the official wage statistics, so no pay estimate is shown. Pay is not in the source listing; ask the employer for the range and compare in the 240 job niches.

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How to prepare and behave

This is editorial guidance, not information from the employer.

• Read the whole description and match your examples to its requirements; use the same words the posting uses where they are true for you.
• Research the employer before the interview: what it does, who its customers are and recent news; prepare two or three questions about the work.
• Arrive early (or log in early for a video call), dress one step above the daily dress code, and test your camera and audio beforehand.
• Answer with short stories: the situation, what you did and the result. Give numbers when you have them and never invent them.
• Be honest about gaps; say what you did to learn and how fast you can close them.
• Ask about the team, the first 90 days, how success is measured and the schedule; do not open with salary and time off.
• When pay comes up, know the market range for the occupation and your lowest acceptable offer before you answer; ask for the full package in writing.
• Send a short thank-you message within a day, mentioning one thing you discussed.
• For an early-career role, highlight coursework, projects, volunteering and part-time jobs; employers expect fewer years of experience but want evidence that you learn fast.
• Have code, data work or projects you can show, and be ready to think aloud: many technical interviews test how you reason, not only the answer.

Know your rights as a candidate and an employee:

• U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission: prohibited employment practices
• U.S. Department of Labor: Wage and Hour Division
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The city

The job is in San Jose, CA. Below is what the official statistics say about living and working there.

How San Jose compares. Among the 145 largest places in California, San Jose is #3 by population, #30 for household income (#1 = highest), #110 for rent (#1 = cheapest), #48 for college degrees (#1 = most). Its county, Santa Clara County, is #1 of 58 counties for average pay ($197,043).

The place in numbers

San Jose has 990,138 residents (ACS 2020–2024), about 2.5% of the population of California. It covers 178 square miles of land, which works out to roughly 5,564 people per square mile. The median age is 38.2, about the same as the state median (38.2 against 37.9).

Housing

The median gross rent is $2,669 a month (rent plus utilities), 31% above the state median ($2,669 against $2,036). Over a year that is 21.9% of the median household income. US housing guidance treats housing as affordable when it takes 30% of income or less, so the typical household is under that line. The median home value is $1,233,200, which is 8.4 times the median household income ($146,427); a ratio above 5 usually means buying is out of reach without savings or a second income. 55.8% of households own their home, about the same as the state average (55.8% against 55.9%).

Work and pay

The San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metropolitan area has 1,134,970 jobs in the BLS wage survey, and the median pay across all occupations is $84,050 a year, 65% above the national median ($84,050 against $50,980). The biggest occupation groups are computer and mathematical (149,970 jobs, median $186,320); management (115,110 jobs, median $210,750); business and financial operations (94,210 jobs, median $125,240). The area is most specialised in computer and mathematical (3.9 times) and architecture and engineering (2.5 times), where the share of workers is well above the national share. The best-paying groups with at least 5,000 jobs are management ($210,750) and legal ($195,190). In 2026M09 the unemployment rate of Santa Clara County was 4.2%. 67.6% of residents aged 16 and over are in the labour force. The city lies in Santa Clara County; its jobs, pay by industry and GDP are on the county page.

Getting around

Among workers, 62.9% drive alone, 2.4% use public transit, 1.8% walk, 20.3% work from home. 15.3% of workers commute 45 minutes or more, 21% below the state average (15.3% against 19.4%).

People and education

47.3% of adults aged 25 and over hold a bachelor's degree or higher, 28% above the state share (47.3% against 37.1%). 42.0% of residents were born outside the United States, 56% above the state share (42.0% against 27.0%). The poverty rate is 8.1%, 32% below the state rate (8.1% against 12.0%).

Climate

The warmest month is Aug, averaging 68°F (19.8°C), and the coolest is Jan at 47°F (8.3°C). About 510 mm (20 inches) of precipitation falls in a year; Dec is the wettest month (114 mm) and Jul the driest (0 mm). These values come from NASA satellite-based climatology on a grid of about 50 km, so they describe the wider area, not a weather station in the city.

Nearby cities to compare

Closest cities in this guide: Campbell (8 miles, similar rent); Los Gatos (9 miles, rent 22% higher); Santa Clara (10 miles, rent 13% higher); Milpitas (10 miles, rent 17% higher). Rent differences are against San Jose; use the Compare tab to put any two cities side by side.

Full guide to San Jose →California guideAll jobs in San Jose

Official links for San Jose

• Census Bureau data profile for San Jose
• Official website of Santa Clara County: santaclaracounty.gov
• Official state website: ca.gov
• BLS Economy at a Glance: California

These links go to official sources and open in a new window. The first one is the government's or company's own site as listed in Wikidata (property "official website"); check it before relying on it.

Where to live

CITY Official statistics Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year (via Census Reporter) · Data: ACS 2020–2024

Places within 50 miles (straight line) of San Jose, CA that have a guide, with what living there costs. No pay estimate is shown because the title did not match one occupation.

Career paths

We could not match this title to one occupation, so here are the other sub-niches in Technology, where your skills may carry over:

Cybersecurity (366) Data, analytics and AI (1991) Cloud, IT and infrastructure (504) Product management (412)

Distances

CITY Calculation (straight line) Source: U.S. Census Bureau Gazetteer (coordinates) · Data: 2024

How far San Jose, CA is from the 20 largest US cities, in straight-line miles (not driving distance). Click a column to sort.

Nearby cities with open jobs (within 120 miles)

The employer

TikTok is the employer in this listing. See all its open jobs here →

Company description (from The Muse): As the leading destination for short-form mobile video, TikTok’s mission is to inspire creativity and bring joy.

size: Large Size; industries: Entertainment & Gaming, Social Media, Technology; locations on The Muse: Dubai, United Arab Emirates, London, United Kingdom, Los Angeles, CA, New York, NY, Paris, France, Singapore.

We do not hold headcount or revenue for this employer. Check its careers site and, if it is listed on a stock exchange, its public filings (SEC EDGAR search).

The employer's profile on The Muse →

What it is like to work at a company (culture, schedules, benefits) is not in the source data, so we do not describe it. Read the description and ask the questions under "How to prepare".

Other open jobs at TikTok

Similar jobs

Same sub-niche: Software engineering

More jobs in San Jose, CA

All Software engineering jobs → · All Technology sub-niches →

FAQ

What is the Software Engineer Intern (Recommendation Architecture, Feeds Infrastructure) - 2027 Fall job at TikTok?

A internship role in technology (software engineering) listed 80 days ago. The full description is on this page and on The Muse.

Where is this job?

San Jose, CA.

How do I apply?

Use the "View this job and apply on The Muse" button. AtiveSite does not receive applications.

How much does it pay?

The listing does not publish pay, and we could not match the title to one official occupation.

What is the cost of living there?

Median rent in San Jose is $2,669 a month and median household income $146,427 (ACS 2020–2024).

How old is this listing?

It was posted on 2026-08-21 (80 days ago). Jobs older than 90 days are not shown.

Are there similar jobs?

Yes: browse software engineering jobs in California.

Sources and terms

• Job data: The Muse public API (listing dated 2026-08-21). The job disappears from this site when it disappears from the source.
• Wages and projections: BLS OEWS (May 2025) and Employment Projections 2025–35.
• City and county figures: Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024, BEA, BLS QCEW and LAUS, NASA POWER climatology; distances from Census Gazetteer coordinates.

AtiveSite is not affiliated with or endorsed by The Muse, the employer or any government agency, and does not process applications. Verify every detail with the employer before acting.

Sources

• BLS OEWS (wages and employment by occupation, May 2025)
• BLS Employment Projections 2025–35
• BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics
• BLS JOLTS
• BLS State and Metro Area Employment
• Census Bureau American Community Survey (via Census Reporter)
• BEA GDP by state and Regional Price Parities
• IRS 2026 tax adjustments
• U.S. Department of Labor, minimum wage by state
• Tax Foundation state income tax rates 2026
• USAJOBS
• USCIS
• U.S. Department of State, visas
• NASA POWER climatology
• GeoNames / Census Gazetteer (coordinates)