AI Search Enhancement Product Intern

Department Overview:

The Digital Product and Experience Strategy (DPX) unit is the cross-functional group overseeing the ACS.org website and adjacent digital platforms and properties. Our goal is to build best-in-class digital experiences on behalf of ACS members, users, and stakeholders. We act as the voice of the customer in digital experiences and new product or feature development, align efforts with organizational priorities and digital best practices, build scalable solutions, and delight users. DPX has a user-centric mindset, is data-informed, and impact-obsessed. We work closely with Communications Division partners and partners across ACS.

Position Summary:

This position will help advance AI-enhanced search functionality, leveraging vector-based search techniques and generative AI to deliver context-aware, semantically relevant results. This role goes beyond metadata cleanup-it focuses on designing search experiences informed by user personas, audience behaviors, and usability testing. The intern will explore how semantic embeddings improve relevance and how generative AI can assist with query expansion, summarization, and personalized recommendations-while ensuring AI is applied only when it solves the right problem. Responsibilities include optimizing metadata for SEO and AEO, conducting competitive market research, and brainstorming innovative search features that enhance discovery and engagement. The mindset is problem-first, AI-second, ensuring solutions are grounded in observability and evaluations, user needs and tested for usability and trust.

Key Responsibilities:

• Audit and clean metadata for accuracy and consistency, and alignment with SEO/AEO best practices.
• Test AI-enhanced search functionality and document issues, incorporating user feedback from UI testing to improve usability and trust in AI-driven features.
• Collaborate with content owners to resolve discrepancies and optimize metadata for search discoverability and user intent.
• Prepare reports on search performance improvements and user testing insights.
• Conduct competitive research on AI-driven search strategies in similar organizations and identify opportunities for differentiation.
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  Brainstorm and propose innovative search features that enhance user experience, guided by a problem-first approach before applying AI.
  
  
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  Assist with setting up evaluations and coordinating with subject matter experts for AI testing to ensure system reliability and performance.
  
  

Education Preferences:
The ideal candidate will be a rising college senior, recent college graduate or pursuing a Bachelor's or Master's degree in Information Systems, Computer Science, Data Analytics.

Required Qualifications:

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  Currently pursuing a degree in one of the fields listed above, or provide relevant experience that matches the position's needs
  
  
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  Exposure to AI/ML concepts, especially generative AI and natural language processing.
  
  
• Strong interest in product management principles, including user research, competitive analysis, and iterative testing.
• Ability to think strategically about search optimization, user experience, and emerging AI technologies.

Pay Transparency: This role is based in our Washington, D.C. office. The following are the intended hourly rates for this part time/nonexempt role: Rising Junior-$24.00; Rising Senior-$25.00; Current Grad/PhD Student- $29.00.

Any actual offer of employment, reflecting the total compensation package and benefits, will be made in the sole discretion of ACS. ACS reserves the right to amend or modify its employment benefits and compensation structure at any time.

*This position will be primarily based in the Washington D.C. (or applicable) office. ACS employees work a hybrid work schedule, consisting of working onsite, two days per week. Schedule flexibility may be required for this role to support in-office activities. While always welcome to work in the office, employees may work the other three days of the week from a location of their choice.

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