{"id":2786290,"url":"https://alion.io/job/nvidia-applied-deep-learning-phd-research-intern-reinforcement-learning-for-llms-fall-2026","title":"Applied Deep Learning PhD Research Intern, Reinforcement Learning for LLMs - Fall 2026","company":{"id":6,"name":"NVIDIA","domain":"nvidia.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/nvidia","size_band":"5000+","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Workday","truth_index":{"grade":"B","score":80,"open_postings":778,"ghost_share":0.026,"stale_share":0.725,"repost_share":0.041,"time_to_fill_p50_days":33,"computed_at":"2026-10-20T05:45:00Z"}},"role":"Early Careers","role_family":"Early Careers","seniority":"intern","employment_type":"internship","work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Santa Clara, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":{"min":38,"max":94,"currency":"USD","period":"hour","gross":null,"usd_annual":188000},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":null,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"AI Agents","optional":false},{"name":"DLSS SDK","optional":false},{"name":"Hallucination","optional":false},{"name":"LLM","optional":false},{"name":"Megatron-LM","optional":false},{"name":"Post-training","optional":false},{"name":"Python","optional":false},{"name":"PyTorch","optional":false},{"name":"Reinforcement Learning","optional":false},{"name":"Reward Modeling","optional":false},{"name":"RLAIF","optional":false},{"name":"RLHF","optional":false}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-10-12T00:00:00Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-10-12","last_verified_at":"2026-10-21T00:48:13Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":9,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":9},"description":"We are looking for PhD research interns excited to advance the next generation of large language models through reinforcement learning. Our applied deep learning research team at NVIDIA has helped pioneer projects such as Megatron, MT-NLG, and DLSS. We build state-of-the-art foundation models and develop new methods to improve their reasoning, alignment, reliability, and ability to solve real-world tasks.\nThis internship will focus on algorithmic research at the intersection of reinforcement learning and large language models. You will design, implement, and evaluate new RL-based methods for improving LLM behavior, with a strong emphasis on hands-on experimentation and rapid prototyping at scale.\nWhat you will be doing:\nDevelop and prototype reinforcement learning algorithms for large language models\n\nExplore methods for improving reasoning, alignment, instruction following, and multi-turn interaction\n\nDesign experiments to evaluate model behavior, robustness, hallucination, and task performance\n\nImplement research ideas in Python and PyTorch, and run experiments on large-scale GPU clusters\n\nWhat we need to see:\nPursuing a PhD in AI, ML, CS, CE, EE, Math, Physics, or a related field\n\nStrong background in reinforcement learning and natural language processing\n\nExcellent programming skills, especially in Python\n\nExperience with deep learning frameworks such as PyTorch\n\nComfort with experimental research, debugging models, and working with large-scale training pipelines\n\nWays to stand out from the crowd:\nPublications or open-source contributions in RL, LLMs, alignment, reasoning, or post-training\n\nExperience with RLHF, RLAIF, policy optimization, reward modeling, or agentic LLM systems\n\nStrong intuition for both algorithms and large-scale implementation\n\nIf you are excited about using reinforcement learning to make language models more capable, reliable, and useful, this team could be a great fit.\nOur internship hourly rates are a standard pay based on the position, your location, year in school, degree, and experience. The hourly rate for our interns is 38 USD - 94 USD.You will also be eligible for Intern benefits.\nApplications for this job will be accepted at least until October 16, 2026.This posting is for an existing vacancy.\nNVIDIA uses AI tools in its recruiting processes.\nNVIDIA is committed to fostering an inclusive work environment and proud to be an equal opportunity employer. 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