Sr Applied Data Scientist - Search Ranking (Applied ML, NLP, LLMs)

RiseMe; Minnesota; Hybrid; USD 98,000 - 211,000; Full time

Job summary

Target is seeking a Sr Data Scientist in Search to develop scalable ML models for ranking, personalization, and semantic retrieval across large retail catalogs. You will design experiments, build production-grade ML pipelines, and partner with product/engineering teams to align solutions with business needs.

The role emphasizes embeddings, transformers, vector search, GenAI/RAG, and a strong focus on latency, scalability, and reliability in a hybrid work setup.

Qualifications

• PhD or MS in Computer Science, Statistics, Applied Mathematics, Physics or related quantitative discipline.
• 3+ years of industry experience in Machine Learning, Data Science, Search, NLP, Personalization or related ML systems.
• Exceptional experience with retrieval/ranking systems, semantic search, NLP, vector search, or related ML domains.
• Strong coding skills in Python and SQL with distributed data processing experience.
• Experience building and deploying end-to-end production ML systems.

Responsibilities

• Develop and deploy scalable ML models for search ranking, browse personalization, semantic retrieval, and query understanding systems.
• Design and run offline and online experiments to improve relevance, engagement, conversion, and customer satisfaction.
• Build scalable feature pipelines, evaluation frameworks, and ML workflows for production systems.
• Apply embeddings, retrieval/ranking models, transformers, NLP, vector search, and GenAI/RAG systems.
• Balance model quality with latency, scalability, reliability, and operational efficiency in large-scale systems.
• Mentor junior scientists and collaborate across teams to improve Search and Browse experiences.

Skills

Python

SQL

Distributed data processing

Production ML systems

Embeddings / NLP

Transformers

GenAI / RAG

Vector search

Education

PhD or MS in CS/Statistics/Applied Math/Physics

Tools

Python

SQL

Job description

The pay range is $98,000.00 - $211,000.00

Pay is based on several factors which vary based on position.These include labor markets and in some instancesmay include education, work experience and certifications. In addition to your pay, Target cares about and invests in you as a team member, so that you can take care of yourself and your family. Target offers eligible team members and their dependents comprehensive health benefits and programs, which may include medical, vision, dental, life insurance and more, to help you and your family take care of your whole selves.Other benefits for eligible team members include 401(k), employee discount, short term disability, long term disability, paid sick leave, paid national holidays, and paid vacation.Find competitive benefits from financial and education to well-being and beyond at https://corporate.target.com/careers/benefits

JOIN TARGET AS A SR APPLIED DATA SCIENTIST – SEARCH RANKING

About Us:

Working at Target means helping all families discover the joy of everyday life. We bring that vision to life through our values and culture. Learn more about Target here.

A role withApplied Data Sciences team at Targetmeans the chance to help develop and managestate of the art predictivealgorithmsthatuse data at scale to automateand optimize decisions at scale. Whether you join our Search, RecSys, Supply Chain Optimization or Machine Learning teams, you’ll be challenged to harness Target’s impressive data breadth to build the algorithmsthat power solutions our partners in Marketing, Supply Chain Optimization, Network Security and Personalization rely on. Every Scientist on Target’s Data Sciences team can expect modeling and data science, software/product development of highly performant code for Model Performance, and to elevate Target’s culture and apply retail domain knowledge.

About our Search and Browse team:

The Search and Browse Applied Data Science team builds the core relevance, retrieval, ranking, and personalization systems that power Target’s Digital experience. We develop scalable ML systems that improve product discovery, semantic search, browse relevance, and customer engagement across Mobile and Web platforms.

E-commerce Search is rapidly evolving with advances in LLMs, semantic retrieval, and conversational AI. We are building next-generation discovery experiences that help millions of guests find the right products quickly and intuitively across massive and constantly changing retail catalogs.

Our team is solving large-scale Search challenges at enterprise scale, including natural language and long-tail search, semantic retrieval, zero-shot item understanding, and AI-native commerce discovery experiences operating at 10K+ QPS with strict latency and reliability requirements.

As a Sr Data Scientist – Search you will:

• Develop and deploy scalable ML models for search ranking, browse personalization, semantic retrieval, and query understanding systems
• Design and execute offline and online experiments to improve relevance, engagement, conversion, and customer satisfaction
• Build scalable feature pipelines, evaluation frameworks, and ML workflows for production systems
• Apply modern ML techniques including embeddings, retrieval/ranking models, transformers, NLP, vector search, and GenAI/RAG systems
• Improve query understanding, catalog understanding, semantic retrieval, and long-tail search relevance across large retail catalogs
• Partner closely with Product, Engineering, and Infrastructure teams to align technical solutions with business priorities and operational requirements
• Drive data-informed decision making through deep analysis, experimentation, and business impact measurement
• Balance model quality with latency, scalability, reliability, and infrastructure efficiency in large-scale production systems
• Contribute to best practices in experimentation, ML engineering, and operational excellence
• Mentor junior scientists and collaborate across teams to improve Search and Browse experiences

Core responsibilities of this job are articulated within this job description. Job duties may change at any time due to business needs.

About you:

• PhD or MS in Computer Science, Statistics, Applied Mathematics, Physics or related quantitative discipline
• 3+ years of industry experience in Machine Learning, Data Science, Search, NLP, Personalization or related ML systems
• Exceptional experience and understanding with retrieval/ranking systems, semantic search, NLP, vector search, or related ML domains
• Strong demonstrated coding skills in Python and SQL with experience in distributed data processing ecosystems
• Demonstrated experience building and deploying end to end production ML systems
• Strong understanding of production ML system tradeoffs including latency, scalability, reliability, and operational excellence
• Experience with modern ML approaches such as embeddings, transformers, semantic retrieval, RAG systems, or GenAI technologies
• Experience designing experiments and interpreting online/offline metrics
• Strong problem-solving skills with the ability to independently drive projects in moderately ambiguous environments
• Very good communication and cross-functional collaboration skills
• Constant learner mentality who stays current with new and evolving AI technologies via formal training and self-directed education

This position will operate as a Hybrid/Flex for Your Day work arrangement based on Target’s needs. A Hybrid/Flex for Your Day work arrangement means the team member’s core role will need to be performed both onsite at the Target HQ in Sunnyvale, CA or MN location the role is assigned to and virtually, depending upon what your role, team and tasks require for that day. Work duties cannot be performed outside of the country of the primary work location, unless otherwise prescribed by Target. Click here if you are curious to learn more about Minnesota.

Target will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the San Francisco and City of Los Angeles Fair Chance Ordinances.

Benefits Eligibility

Please paste this url into your preferred browser to learn about benefits eligibility for this role: https://tgt.biz/BenefitsForYou_D

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

In compliance with state and federal laws, Target will make reasonable accommodations for applicants with disabilities. If a reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, please reach out to [e-mail]. Non-accommodation-related requests, such as application follow-ups or technical issues, will not be addressed through this channel.

Application deadline is : 10/29/2026