PhD Internship: Interaction Design Engineer

Figma; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 84,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Housing stipend

Travel reimbursement

Job summary

Figma is seeking a PhD intern to blend HCI research with hands-on engineering, shaping the next generation of interactive design tooling. You’ll work with a mentor and team to translate research into production-ready systems and contribute to real-world impact during a 12- or 16-week Summer 2027 internship based in San Francisco or New York.

You’ll collaborate with engineers, PMs, designers, and researchers to scope, validate, and deliver projects, showcasing your research background and strong

Qualifications

• Current enrollment as a 4th or 5th year senior PhD student pursuing a PhD in Computer Science, Human-Computer Interaction, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, or a related field.
• Demonstrated ability to translate complex research concepts into practical, scalable solutions.
• A track record of rigorous problem-solving through academic or applied research.

Responsibilities

• Be embedded on a Figma team working on problems that intersect with your research area.
• Drive projects that apply research insights to meaningful product challenges.
• Collaborate with engineers, PMs, designers, and researchers to scope and execute your work.
• Develop, validate, and document solutions from prototypes to production-ready systems.
• Share your expertise through presentations, design reviews, and cross-functional collaboration.
• Deliver a project with real impact by the end of your internship.

Skills

Translate complex research concepts

Rigorous problem-solving

General purpose coding language

Education

PhD student (4th or 5th year) in Computer Science / HCI / AI / ML

Job description

Figma is seeking a PhD intern to blend HCI research with hands-on engineering, shaping the next generation of interactive design tooling. You’ll work with a mentor and team to translate research into production-ready systems and contribute to real-world impact during a 12- or 16-week Summer 2027 internship based in San Francisco or New York.

You’ll collaborate with engineers, PMs, designers, and researchers to scope, validate, and deliver projects, showcasing your research background and strong