Sr Applied Data Scientist - Item Recommendations; applied ML, PyTorch, ML Ops

Pay range: $98,000.00 - $

Target offers comprehensive health benefits and programs, including medical, vision, dental, life insurance, and more, as well as 401(k), employee discount, short‑term disability, long‑term disability, paid sick leave, paid national holidays, and paid vacation.

Working at Target means helping all families discover the joy of everyday life. Target’s mission is supported by its values and culture.

As a member of Target Data Sciences, you will help develop and manage state‑of‑the‑art predictive algorithms that use data at scale to automate and optimize decisions. In this role you will collaborate with data scientists, machine learning engineers, and product managers to build and augment AI‑driven digital recommendation products. Your work will involve data exploration and analysis, algorithm implementation, deployment to production, and performance analysis.

You will also document and present results to technical and non‑technical audiences, ensuring solutions align with business priorities.

• MS or PhD in Computer Science, Machine Learning, Statistics, Applied Mathematics, Operations Research, or relevant professional experience
• 3+ years developing machine learning models using deep learning frameworks such as PyTorch or JAX
• Experience building recommendation, personalization, search, ranking, or retrieval systems at scale
• Strong programming skills in Python and SQL
• Demonstrated expertise in optimization, statistics, probability, and experimental design
• Proven ability to evaluate models via offline analysis on large‑scale datasets and online experimentation, including statistical analysis and interpretation
• Knowledge of large‑scale data processing platforms such as Spark
• Extensive experience leveraging generative AI tools for development, experimentation, and model delivery
• Excellent communication skills, able to explain complex technical concepts to both technical and non‑technical audiences
• Demonstrated ability to translate business problems into scalable data science solutions
• Self‑driven, results‑oriented, and able to meet tight deadlines
• Motivated team player who thrives in a collaborative, global environment

This position will operate in a Hybrid/Flex for Your Day arrangement, performing core duties both onsite at the Target HQ in MN and virtually as required. Work must be performed within the country of the primary work location unless otherwise prescribed.

Benefits Eligibility:

Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA):
Target will make reasonable accommodations for applicants with disabilities. Requests for accommodations can be directed to candidate.acc