Machine Learning Engineer Graduate (TikTok Vertical Search) - 2026 Start (BS/MS)

Responsibilities

Team Introduction

The TikTok Search Team is building a large-scale, full-stack search engine to serve billions of users worldwide. Our mission is to deliver not just relevant results, but an ideal search experience that is fast, personalized, and insightful.

We work across both general and vertical search scenarios, including PhotoText, User Search, Live and more — applying Large Language Models (LLMs), NLP, and Multimodal Understanding to continuously push the boundaries of search quality and system design.

We are looking for talented individuals to join our team in 2026. As a graduate, you will get opportunities to pursue bold ideas, tackle complex challenges, and unlock limitless growth. Launch your career where inspiration is infinite at TikTok.

Successful candidates must be able to commit to an onboarding date by end of year 2026. Please state your availability and graduation date clearly in your resume.

Candidates can apply to a maximum of two positions and will be considered for jobs in the order you apply. The application limit is applicable to TikTok and its affiliates' jobs globally. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis - we encourage you to apply early.

Responsibilities

• Improve TikTok’s core and vertical search quality (e.g., PhotoText, User, Live etc.) across the full stack: query understanding, content understanding, ranking.
• Apply LLMs, NLP, and multimodal models to enhance semantic relevance and intent understanding.
• Collaborate with product and infra teams to deliver impactful features on a global scale.
  
  

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications:

• Final year or recent graduate with a background in Computer Science or a related technical field.
• Strong coding skills in C++/Python/Java.
• Solid understanding of algorithms and data structures.
  
  

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in one or more of: NLP, Search, Ranking, Ads, Recommender Systems, or Machine Learning.
• Familiarity with LLMs or multimodal learning techniques.
• Strong communication and collaboration skills.
  
  

By submitting an application for this role, you accept and agree to our global applicant privacy policy, which may be accessed here: https://careers.tiktok.com/legal/privacy

If you have any questions, please reach out to us at [email protected]

Job Information

About TikTok

TikTok is the leading destination for short-form mobile video. At TikTok, our mission is to inspire creativity and bring joy. TikTok's global headquarters are in Los Angeles and Singapore, and we also have offices in New York City, London, Dublin, Paris, Berlin, Dubai, Jakarta, Seoul, and Tokyo.

Why Join Us

Inspiring creativity is at the core of TikTok's mission. Our innovative product is built to help people authentically express themselves, discover and connect – and our global, diverse teams make that possible. Together, we create value for our communities, inspire creativity and bring joy - a mission we work towards every day.

We strive to do great things with great people. We lead with curiosity, humility, and a desire to make impact in a rapidly growing tech company. Every challenge is an opportunity to learn and innovate as one team. We're resilient and embrace challenges as they come. By constantly iterating and fostering an "Always Day 1" mindset, we achieve meaningful breakthroughs for ourselves, our company, and our users. When we create and grow together, the possibilities are limitless. Join us.

Diversity & Inclusion

TikTok is committed to creating an inclusive space where employees are valued for their skills, experiences, and unique perspectives. Our platform connects people from across the globe and so does our workplace. At TikTok, our mission is to inspire creativity and bring joy. To achieve that goal, we are committed to celebrating our diverse voices and to creating an environment that reflects the many communities we reach. We are passionate about this and hope you are too.