Software Engineering Intern - Quantum Information Science 2027

International Business Machines Corporation; Poughkeepsie (AR); On-site; USD 22,000 - 30,000; Full time

Job summary

IBM Research in the United States is seeking a highly skilled intern for the Quantum Information Software group. You will turn advances in fault-tolerant quantum computing into production-quality software, collaborating with researchers and engineers.

The role emphasizes Rust and Python development, strong software engineering fundamentals, and coursework in quantum information. Join us in a fast-paced research environment to impact next-generation quantum workloads.

Qualifications

• Master's degree in a relevant field or be on track to complete it.
• Experience with Rust and Python is required.
• Strong fundamentals in software design, testing, debugging and version control.
• Coursework or practical experience in quantum information or quantum computing.

Responsibilities

• Contribute to quantum compilation architectures for fault-tolerant quantum programs
• Build software infrastructure for representing, analyzing, and transforming large-scale quantum programs
• Design and implementing compiler passes for analysis and optimization of quantum circuits
• Contribute to new execution models and software abstractions for next-generation quantum workloads
• Develop and evaluating tools and techniques for noise learning and scalable execution of error-mitigated workloads
• Implement and benchmarking state-of-the-art compilation and optimization techniques from the research literature
• Contributing to open-source quantum software projects and tooling

Skills

Rust

Python

Software engineering fundamentals

Education

Master's Degree

Tools

NumPy

JAX

PyTorch

XLA

TensorFlow

Qiskit

Job description

Introduction

At IBM Research, we are the innovation engine of IBM that explores what's next in computing. Working in Research means joining a brilliant team of scientists and developers working to advance high-performance computing, AI, quantum, and cloud. With a culture built on curiosity, creativity, and collaboration, IBM Research offers the opportunity to grow your career while contributing to breakthroughs that transform industries and change the world.

Introduction

At IBM Research, we are the innovation engine of IBM that explores what's next in computing. Working in Research means joining a brilliant team of scientists and developers working to advance high-performance computing, AI, quantum, and cloud. With a culture built on curiosity, creativity, and collaboration, IBM Research offers the opportunity to grow your career while contributing to breakthroughs that transform industries and change the world.

Your Role And Responsibilities

As an intern in the Quantum Information Software group at IBM, you will work with researchers and software engineers to turn advances in fault-tolerant quantum computing into production-quality software. Your role may include:

• Contributing to quantum compilation architectures for fault-tolerant quantum programs
• Building and extending software infrastructure for representing, analyzing, and transforming large-scale quantum programs
• Designing and implementing compiler passes for the analysis and optimization of quantum circuits
• Contributing to new execution models and software abstractions for next-generation quantum workloads
• Developing and evaluating tools and techniques for noise learning and scalable execution of error-mitigated workloads
• Implementing and benchmarking state-of-the-art compilation and optimization techniques from the research literature
• Contributing to open-source quantum software projects and tooling

Preferred Education

Master's Degree

Required Technical And Professional Expertise

• Experience developing software in Rust and Python
• Strong software engineering fundamentals, including software design, testing, debugging, and version control
• Coursework or experience in quantum information, quantum computing, quantum algorithms, or a related area

Preferred Technical And Professional Experience

Any of the following would be considered a plus:

• Familiarity with quantum compiler architectures, intermediate representations (IRs), and program optimization techniques
• Experience with scientific computing frameworks such as NumPy, JAX, PyTorch, XLA, or TensorFlow
• Strong hands‑on experience with Qiskit or a comparable quantum SDK