[Hiring] Applied Scientist Intern @Upstart

Role Description

As an Applied Scientist Intern, you will become a specialist in our models, products, business and/or codebase. You will identify potential problems or opportunities for improvement, communicate these to the team and suggest solutions. This involves self-directed investigation, offline analyses using creative thinking as well as presentation to the ML team. You will receive mentorship from experienced ML practitioners and collaborate closely with the team to improve our products and models.

How you’ll make an impact:

• Research machine learning and statistical approaches to discover improvements to the predictive performance and/or business value of a model.
• Design, implement, and evaluate model, product, or technical enhancements using rigorous experimentation and validation methods.
• Translate research findings into clear recommendations, documented methodologies, and production-ready solutions.
• Work with your mentor to align stakeholders, and drive next steps.

Qualifications

• Bachelor, Masters or PHD degree in mathematics, statistics, physics, econometrics, computer science, or a related quantitative field. On track to graduate by 2028.
• Strong fundamentals in statistical, probability, and machine learning theory.
• Ability to perform data analysis and evaluate machine learning or statistical models using Python, as well as basic SQL foundations.
• Intellectual curiosity, humility, drive and teamwork.
• Strong communication skills.
• Ability to use modern agentic tooling (Claude Code, Codex, …) efficiently.

Requirements

• PhD in mathematics, statistics, physics, econometrics, computer science, or a related quantitative field. On track to graduate by the summer of 2028.
• Experience in supervised learning, model evaluation, and feature engineering techniques.
• Advanced statistical (frequentist, bayesian, causal) theory/econometrics knowledge.
• Strong coding skills in Python.

Benefits

• UHC High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP) for comprehensive medical coverage.
• Health Savings Account (HSA) with employer funding of $800 for employee-only coverage or $1,600 when covering dependents.
• Medical opt-out credit of $150 per month if the health plan is waived.
• Guardian Dental.
• Guardian Vision Base.
• Short-term and long-term disability coverage; auto-enrolled.
• Basic Life and Accident Insurance; auto-enrolled.
• Limited Purpose Flexible Spending Account (LFSA).
• Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account (DCFSA).
• Pre-tax commuter benefits.