Research PhD Intern

Company Description
Etsy is the global marketplace for unique and creative goods. We build, power, and evolve the tools and technologies that connect millions of entrepreneurs with millions of buyers around the world. As an Etsy Inc. employee, whether a team member of Etsy, Reverb, or Depop, you will tackle unique, meaningful, and large-scale problems alongside passionate coworkers, all the while making a rewarding impact and Keeping Commerce Human.

Salary Range:

What’s the role?

We are looking for Research Scientist Interns to help build new and amazing experiences for people buying and selling on Etsy.

As the Research Scientist Intern, you will be responsible for making  core algorithmic advances and applying these ideas in the dynamic world of E-commerce! At the end of the summer, strive to present your innovations at premier conferences such as KDD, NeurIPS, ICML, ICLR & INFORMS!

Do you find happiness in rapidly prototyping ideas and solving complex problems by adapting creative approaches that affect the experience of millions of users over the world? If so, this could be a great match.

This is a full-time, temporary position and the base salary range will be $65 - $85 USD per hour. For this role, we are considering candidates based in the United States. Candidates living within commutable distance of Etsy’s Brooklyn Office Hub may be the first to be considered. 

What does the day-to-day look like?

• Etsy’s internship program is taking place from May 20th to Aug 22nd, 2025.

• Interns are placed on real teams, contributing to research that can be applied to product development.

• Develop proof of concepts and tackle problems through creative approaches.

• Identify baselines, datasets, experiments and metrics for your project.

• Work closely and collaboratively with Applied Scientists and engineers.

• Prepare technical reports and presentations. Engage with the academic community by presenting your work and speaking at conferences and events.

• Of course, this is just a sample of the kinds of work this role will require! You should assume that your role will encompass other tasks, too, and that your job duties and responsibilities may change from time to time at Etsy's discretion, or otherwise applicable with local law.

Qualities that will help you thrive in this role are:

• Currently enrolled in a full-time PhD degree program in Machine Learning, Operations Research, Operations Management, Economics (or related quantitative backgrounds).

• Experience or curiosity about publishing papers at top-tier venues.

• Strong analytical and quantitative skills. You are familiar with techniques in Machine Learning, Optimization (Linear and Dynamic Programming), and Mechanism Design

• Strong technical and programming skills and familiar with relevant technologies and languages (e.g. Python, SQL.)

• Proven capability to review and write technical papers

• Strong collaboration and communication skills and you make the engineers around you grow and learn

• Trust in and dedication to Etsy’s vision, mission and values

• Want to make a meaningful impact on the world around you

• Get inspired on a daily basis, think of new ideas and like to share them with others

Additional Information

What's Next
If you're interested in joining the team at Etsy, please share your resume with us and feel free to include a cover letter if you'd like. As we hope you've seen already, Etsy is a place that values individuality and variety. We don't want you to be like everyone else -- we want you to be like you! So tell us what you're all about.

Our Promise
At Etsy, we believe that a diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace furthers relevance, resilience, and longevity. We encourage people from all backgrounds, ages, abilities, and experiences to apply. Etsy is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. If, due to a disability, you need an accommodation during any part of the interview process, please let your recruiter know. While Etsy supports visa sponsorship, sponsorship opportunities may be limited to certain roles and skills.