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, who 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.

The AI Interaction and Learning (AIIL) group in Microsoft Research focuses on building and analyzing symbiotic artificial intelligence (AI) systems, where knowledge workers and AI agents collaborate to produce outputs of ever-increasing value. To achieve this, our current projects topics include:

• Semantic Telemetry and User Modeling: Assessing how people use copilot systems at scale and measuring value to the user. This includes work on measurement, evaluation, and synthetic data generation.
• Interactive Machine Learning and Continual Learning: Utilizing interaction traces to extract signals (eg. preferences, feedback) and improve the performance of the AI systems. This includes work on personalization, recommendations, prompt optimization, fine-tuning, and alignment.

We work together with our collaborators in research and product teams on fundamental and applied research. We are particularly interested in candidates with a demonstrated desire to advance the state-of-the-art through research and experience in one or more of the following: Foundation Models, Dialog Systems, Agents, Reinforcement Learning, Natural Language Processing, Interactive Learning, Behavioral Modeling, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Search/Recommendation, Computational Social Science, Computation Economics, or Human-AI Collaboration. Candidates are encouraged to browse some of our recent publications for examples of active areas of research in the group.

Responsibilities

Research Interns put inquiry and theory into practice. Alongside fellow doctoral candidates and some of the world’s best researchers, Research Interns learn, collaborate, and network for life. Research Interns not only advance their own careers, but they also contribute to exciting research and development strides. During the 12-week internship, Research Interns are paired with mentors and expected to collaborate with other Research 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.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

• Currently enrolled in a PhD program in CS, EE or a related STEM field. 
• At least 1 year of experience conducting research, writing peer-reviewed publications and software development

Other Requirements

• Research Interns are expected to be physically located in their manager’s Microsoft worksite location for the duration of their internship.
• In addition to the qualifications below, you’ll need to submit a minimum of two reference letters for this position as well as a cover letter and any relevant work or research samples. 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. 

Preferred Qualifications

• Ability to think unconventionally to derive creative and innovative solutions.
• Actively conducting research in at least one of the following areas: large foundation models, dialog systems, reinforcement learning, natural language processing, interactive ML, recommender systems, multi-agent systems, artificial intelligence, machine learning, information retrieval, computational social science, computational economics, or human-ai collaboration.
• Ability to collaborate effectively with your mentor and others in Microsoft on research projects.
• Proficient interpersonal skills, cross-group, and cross-culture collaboration skills.

The base pay range for this internship is USD $6,550 - $12,880 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 $8,480 - $13,920 per month.

Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here: https://careers.microsoft.com/us/en/us-intern-pay 

Microsoft accepts applications and processes offers for these roles on an ongoing basis.

Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable laws, regulations and ordinances.  We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application or the recruiting process, please send a request via the Accommodation request form.

Benefits/perks listed below may vary depending on the nature of your employment with Microsoft and the country where you work.