Research Intern - Applied Large Language Models

Key Skills

Effective communication skills, Large Language Models - LLMs

Job Description

Research Internships at Microsoft provide a dynamic environment for research careers with a network of world-class research labs led by globally-recognized scientists and engineers. Our researchers and engineers pursue innovation in a range of scientific and technical disciplines to help solve complex challenges in diverse fields, including computing, healthcare, economics, and the environment.

Microsoft is seeking outstanding research interns to help develop the next generation of productivity applications powered by large language models. We are particularly interested in candidates with expertise in augmentation of language models (e.g. retrieval augmentation), prompt engineering, hallucination mitigation, techniques that drive inference efficiencies, LLM interaction paradigms, and related applied research subjects.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

In addition to the qualifications below, you’ll need to submit a minimum of two reference letters for this position. After you submit your application, a request for letters may be sent to your list of references on your behalf. Note that reference letters cannot be requested until after you have submitted your application, and furthermore, that they might not be automatically requested for all candidates. You may wish to alert your letter writers in advance, so they will be ready to submit your letter.

• Must be accepted or currently enrolled in a PhD program in Computer Science, Information Science, Statistics, Information Systems, Economics, Operation Research or a related STEM field.
• Must have at least 1 year of experience in conducting research and writing peer-reviewed publication.

Interns are expected to be physically located in their manager’s Microsoft worksite location for the duration of their internship.

Preferred Qualifications

• Several publications on applied aspects of LLMs or related predecessor technologies (e.g. ways to use models, finetuning, prompt engineering, interaction with LLMs).
• A strong desire to see one’s research benefit a large number of users rather than appear only in papers.
• Ability to collaborate effectively with your mentor and others in Microsoft on research projects. 
• Excellent interpersonal skills, cross-group, and cross-culture collaboration skills.
• Ability to think unconventionally to derive creative and innovative solutions.

The base pay range for this internship is USD $5,090 - $10,120 per month. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $6,690 - $11,030 per month.

Benefits/perks listed here may vary depending on the nature of employment with Microsoft and the country work location. U.S.-based interns have access to medical and vision insurance, paid sick time (accrued at 3.34 hours per pay period worked), paid federal holidays, and software discounts. Puget Sound-based interns gain access to a bus pass and a fitness club membership.

Our Commitment to Pay Equity 

We are committed to the principle of pay equity – paying employees equitably for substantially similar work. To learn more about pay equity and our other commitments to increase representation and strengthen our culture of inclusion, check out our annual Diversity & Inclusion Report. 

( https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/diversity/inside-microsoft/annual-report )

Understanding Roles at Microsoft​ 

The top of this page displays the role for which the base pay ranges apply – Applied Sciences IC2.

The way we define roles includes two things: discipline (the type of work) and career stage (scope and complexity). The career stage has two parts – the first identifies whether the role is a manager (M), an individual contributor (IC), an admin-technician-retail (ATR) job, or an intern. The second part identifies the relative seniority of the role – a higher number (or later letter alphabetically in the case of ATR) indicates greater scope and complexity.

Responsibilities

Interns put inquiry and theory into practice. Alongside fellow doctoral candidates and some of the world’s best researchers, interns learn, collaborate, and network for life. Interns not only advance their own careers, but they also contribute to exciting research and development strides. During the 12-week internship, students are paired with mentors and expected to collaborate with other interns and researchers, present findings, and contribute to the vibrant life of the community. Research internships are available in all areas of research, and are offered year-round, though they typically begin in the summer.