Backend Software Engineer Graduate (TikTok-PGC-Creator Strategy) - 2027 Start

TikTok; San Jose, Northern (CA, KY); On-site; USD 128,000 - 256,000; Full time

Job summary

TikTok is seeking a Backend Software Engineer Graduate for a 2027 start in San Jose to design, develop, and maintain backend services for the Creator Strategy and monetization initiatives.

You will work on scalable systems, eligibility, rewards, governance, and payout workflows, collaborating with Product, Data Science, and Trust & Safety to deliver robust technical solutions at scale.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or a related field.
• Proficiency in a backend language such as Go, Java, C++, or Python; Go is a plus.
• Strong understanding of data structures, algorithms, networks, operating systems, and DB fundamentals.
• Familiarity with relational databases and caching technologies such as MySQL and Redis, including indexing and performance optimization.
• Hands-on software engineering experience through internships, research, open-source contributions, or projects.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and maintain backend services for TikTok PGC Creator Strategy and monetization, including the Creator Rewards Program, incentive mechanisms, governance, and payout.
• Build reliable and scalable systems that translate creator strategy into eligibility, reward calculation, governance and financial workflows.
• Partner with Product, Data Science, Research, Operations, and Trust and Safety to understand needs and deliver technical solutions.
• Improve correctness, performance, availability, observability, and data integrity of large-scale data-intensive systems through testing, monitoring, and code reviews.
• Contribute to technical design and implementation, own projects from development through launch, iterate using data and feedback.

Skills

Go

Java

Python

Data structures

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related field

Tools

MySQL

Redis

Job description

Discover a career that energizes and excites you every day.

@2026 TikTok

Backend Software Engineer Graduate (TikTok-PGC-Creator Strategy) - 2027 Start

Location:

San Jose

Employment Type:

Regular

Job Code:

A132912B

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Responsibilities

About the Team The TikTok Eng - PGC - Creator Strategy team builds technology that helps TikTok identify, incentivize, and grow high-quality professionally generated content while enabling creators to build sustainable careers on the platform. We develop the strategy and engineering infrastructure that turns creator and platform goals into scalable monetization programs, incentive mechanisms, product experiences, and governance solutions. One of the team's core products is the Creator Rewards Program, a key pillar of TikTok's creator monetization ecosystem. The team supports the end-to-end creator journey—from eligibility and enrollment to reward calculation, earnings transparency, content and account governance, and payout—across multiple global markets. We work at the intersection of large-scale backend engineering, creator strategy, incentive design, monetization, and trust and safety. You will collaborate closely with Product, Data Science, Research, Design, Operations, and Trust and Safety teams to improve high-quality content supply, creator value, spending efficiency, transparency, and the scalability of our creator ecosystem. We are looking for talented individuals to join our team. As a graduate, you will get opportunities to pursue bold ideas, tackle complex challenges, and unlock limitless growth. Successful candidates must be able to commit to an onboarding date by the end of the year. 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 our Company and its affiliates' jobs globally. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis - we encourage you to apply early.

• Design, develop, and maintain backend services for TikTok PGC Creator Strategy and creator monetization, including the Creator Rewards Program, incentive mechanisms, creator experiences, governance, and payout.
• Build reliable and scalable systems that translate creator strategy into configurable eligibility, reward calculation, experimentation, governance, and financial workflows.
• Partner with Product, Data Science, Research, Operations, and Trust and Safety teams to understand creator and business needs, evaluate trade-offs, and deliver well-designed technical solutions.
• Improve the correctness, performance, availability, observability, and data integrity of large-scale, data-intensive systems through testing, monitoring, code reviews, and technical documentation.
• Contribute to technical design and implementation, take ownership of projects from development through launch, and use data and feedback to drive ongoing product and system iteration.

Qualifications

• Individuals who are completing or have recently completed a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or a related discipline.
• Proficiency in at least one backend programming language such as Go, Java, C++, or Python; experience with Go is a plus.
• Solid understanding of data structures, algorithms, computer networks, operating systems, and database fundamentals.
• Familiarity with relational databases and caching technologies such as MySQL and Redis, including basic indexing and performance optimization concepts.
• Strong problem-solving skills, learning agility, ownership, and the ability to communicate and collaborate effectively in a team environment.

• Hands-on software engineering experience through internships, research, open-source contributions, coding competitions, or relevant projects.
• Experience with backend services, distributed systems, microservices, message queues, RPC frameworks, or cloud-native technologies.
• Exposure to high-concurrency or data-intensive systems and an understanding of reliability, observability, and data consistency.
• Interest in the creator economy, monetization products, recommendation ecosystems, or trust and safety systems.
• High levels of curiosity, creativity, and the ability to solve ambiguous problems in a fast-moving environment.

Job Information

The base salary range for this position in the selected city is $128000 - $256000 annually.

Compensation may vary outside of this range depending on a number of factors, including a candidate’s qualifications, skills, competencies and experience, and location. Base pay is one part of the Total Package that is provided to compensate and recognize employees for their work, and this role may be eligible for additional discretionary bonuses/incentives, and restricted stock units.

Benefits may vary depending on the nature of employment and the country work location. Employees have day one access to medical, dental, and vision insurance, a 401(k) savings plan with company match, paid parental leave, short-term and long-term disability coverage, life insurance, wellbeing benefits, among others. Employees also receive 10 paid holidays per year, 10 paid sick days per year and 17 days of Paid Personal Time (prorated upon hire with increasing accruals by tenure).

The Company reserves the right to modify or change these benefits programs at any time, with or without notice.

For Los Angeles County (unincorporated) Candidates:

Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with all federal, state, and local laws including the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers and the California Fair Chance Act. Our company believes that criminal history may have a direct, adverse and negative relationship on the following job duties, potentially resulting in the withdrawal of the conditional offer of employment:

1. Interacting and occasionally having unsupervised contact with internal/external clients and/or colleagues;

2. Appropriately handling and managing confidential information including proprietary and trade secret information and access to information technology systems; and

3. Exercising sound judgment.

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.

TikTok Accommodation

TikTok is committed to providing reasonable accommodations in our recruitment processes for candidates with disabilities, pregnancy, sincerely held religious beliefs or other reasons protected by applicable laws. If you need assistance or a reasonable accommodation, please reach out to us at https://tinyurl.com/RA-request