How to Get a Job at NVIDIA

NVIDIA Details & History

Founded in 1993, NVIDIA Corporation is a global leader in visual computing technology, headquartered in Santa Clara, California. The company is renowned for its innovation in graphics processing units (GPUs), which are widely used in gaming, professional visualization, data centers, and automotive markets. Over the years, NVIDIA has expanded its reach into artificial intelligence (AI) and deep learning, making significant strides in developing AI-driven solutions for various industries. With a strong commitment to remote work, NVIDIA offers a range of opportunities for professionals at all levels, including entry-level positions.

Recently, NVIDIA has been experiencing an explosion in popularity due to the increasing demand for GPUs in gaming, cryptocurrency mining, and AI research. For your reference: in 2020 (not long ago!), the stock price was around $6 per share. But as of today, NVIDIA's stock price has surged to over $135 per share-- more than 20x!! Wish we had worked there!

NVIDIA Office Locations

NVIDIA Corporation is headquartered in Santa Clara, California, but has an extensive global presence with 67 (!!) office locations. Key locations in the United States include:

• Santa Clara, CA (Headquarters): 2788 San Tomas Expressway
• Austin, TX: 11001 Lakeline Blvd Suite #100 Bldg. 2
• Boulder, CO: 1881 9th St #335
• Brentwood, MO: 1600 S Brentwood Blvd #320
• Champaign, IL: Z-Building, 1901 S 1st St Suite D
• Charlottesville, VA: 410 Water St E #200
• Durham, NC: 2600 Meridian Pkwy
• Fort Collins, CO: 300 E Boardwalk Dr Building 3D
• Herndon, VA: 575 Herndon Pkwy STE 130
• Hillsboro, OR: 9030 NE Walker Road, Suite 100
  

NVIDIA Primary Competitors

NVIDIA faces stiff competition from several prominent companies in the tech industry. The main competitors include:

1. Advanced Micro Devices (AMD): AMD is a major player in the GPU market and has been NVIDIA's closest rival for years, particularly in the gaming graphics cards and CPU markets. AMD offers a range of GPUs and has been gaining market share by focusing on affordable and high-performance products​​​​.
2. Intel (you know these guys): Known primarily for its dominance in the CPU market, Intel also competes with NVIDIA in the GPU sector. Intel's integrated graphics solutions and its expanding presence in AI and autonomous driving technologies pose significant competition​​​​.
3. Broadcom: This company competes with NVIDIA in the semiconductor space, particularly in the data center, networking, and telecommunications markets. Broadcom is known for its strong presence in the infrastructure software and semiconductor industries​​​​.
4. Qualcomm: Known for its processors used in mobile devices, Qualcomm also competes with NVIDIA in the semiconductor market, providing chips for smartphones, automotive, and IoT applications​​.
5. Xilinx: Specializes in programmable logic devices and competes with NVIDIA in the field of integrated circuits and FPGAs (Field-Programmable Gate Arrays). Xilinx's products are widely used in data centers, aerospace, and defense applications​​.
6. Texas Instruments: Competes with NVIDIA in producing semiconductors for various industries, including automotive and industrial equipment. Texas Instruments is known for targeting smaller companies with budget-friendly solutions​​.
7. Sapphire Technology: A smaller but notable competitor in the GPU market, producing graphics cards for PCs and workstations. Sapphire's innovative approaches to GPU design make it a competitor to watch​​.

Top NVIDIA Departments for Entry-Level Roles

NVIDIA offers a range of entry-level roles across various departments, providing opportunities for new graduates and those early in their careers to join the company. Some of the top departments for entry-level positions at NVIDIA include:

1. Engineering:
   • Software Engineering: Entry-level software engineers work on developing and optimizing software for NVIDIA's products. This includes drivers, applications, and development tools.
   • Hardware Engineering: Entry-level roles in hardware engineering involve working on the design, development, and testing of NVIDIA's cutting-edge hardware, such as GPUs and other semiconductor products.
2. Data Science and AI:
   • Machine Learning and AI: These roles involve developing and implementing AI and machine learning algorithms to enhance NVIDIA's products and services. Entry-level data scientists and AI engineers contribute to projects related to deep learning, computer vision, and natural language processing.
3. Technical Support:
   • Customer Support Engineers: These positions involve assisting customers with technical issues related to NVIDIA products. Entry-level roles in this department require strong problem-solving skills and a solid understanding of NVIDIA's technologies.
4. Product Management:
   • Associate Product Managers: Entry-level product managers work on defining product requirements, collaborating with engineering teams, and helping to bring new products to market. This role requires a mix of technical knowledge and business acumen.
5. Marketing and Communications:
   • Marketing Coordinators: Entry-level marketing roles involve supporting marketing campaigns, creating content, and analyzing market trends to help promote NVIDIA's products and brand.
   • Communications Specialists: These roles focus on internal and external communications, including writing press releases, managing social media, and coordinating public relations efforts.
6. Sales:
   • Sales Associates: Entry-level sales positions at NVIDIA involve supporting the sales team, managing customer relationships, and helping to drive sales of NVIDIA's products and solutions.
7. Finance and Operations:
   • Financial Analysts: These roles involve analyzing financial data, preparing reports, and supporting budgeting and forecasting processes.
   • Operations Coordinators: Entry-level operations roles involve supporting the day-to-day operations of the company, including supply chain management, logistics, and process improvement initiatives.

Diversity at NVIDIA

NVIDIA gets a gold star for diversity efforts-- they are transparent and regularly report on their progress. We'll let you read it for yourself!

It's also important to call out their "Ignite" internship program, a blurb we'll quote below: 

The NVIDIA Ignite program gives you everything you need to start building your career—a whole lot earlier than you might expect. This inclusive, 12-week summer pre-internship program was created to give current freshmen and sophomores from historically underrepresented communities a chance to work hands-on with real technical experts on real projects. It’s a fully immersive experience covering the products, culture, and ecosystem that make NVIDIA a truly unique place to ignite your future.

We LOVE this program and what it represents. Read more about it and apply here.

Is remote work allowed at NVIDIA?

As mentioned before, YES. Remote work is a cornerstone of NVIDIA's culture. They practice what they preach, and even have a hype page on it here for their solutions for others.

Is it hard to get a job with NVIDIA?

Yes, absolutely. Even seasoned tech employees have issues getting interviews at NVIDIA due to their rapid popularity and competitive nature. NVIDIA attracts top talent from around the world, including graduates from prestigious universities and experienced professionals from leading tech companies. They're also looking for super specialized skillsets like artificial intelligence, machine learning, GPU programming, and hardware engineering. Having experience or expertise in these areas is often crucial for getting hired, even for entry-level positions.

Does NVIDIA have good benefits?

NVIDIA does have great benefits, but their #1 benefit in our opinion is their stance on remote work. Very few companies offer such flexibility with no COL adjustments, and this is a great target company for the digital nomad dreamers out there. However, we couldn't find any specialized benefits outside of: 

Who is NVIDIA looking to hire?

NVIDIA values people of all backgrounds to create community in their workforce. They especially seek out those who demonstrate their company values.

NVIDIA Values

• Dream big, start small. Take risks, learn fast.
• Seek truth, learn from mistakes, share learnings.
• Learn, adapt, shape the world.
• Maintain the highest standards.
• Do what’s best for the company.

You can read more about their values here.

NVIDIA Interview Process

The interview process at NVIDIA is known for being thorough and challenging, designed to identify candidates who are not only technically proficient but also a good fit for the company's innovative culture. Here’s a detailed overview of what you can expect:

Initial Application and Screening

1. Online Application: The process typically begins with submitting an online application through NVIDIA’s careers page. This includes uploading your resume and any relevant portfolios or project work.
2. Recruiter Screening: If your application stands out, a recruiter will reach out to conduct an initial phone screen. This discussion generally covers your background, experience, and interest in the role and company.

Technical Interviews

3. Technical Phone Screen: This stage often involves one or more phone interviews with a technical recruiter or a team member. These interviews usually include coding challenges or questions related to your field of expertise. You may be asked to solve problems using an online coding platform.
4. Take-Home Assignment: In some cases, candidates may receive a take-home assignment to complete. This could involve coding tasks, design problems, or other relevant technical challenges.

On-Site or Virtual Interviews

5. On-Site Interviews: Successful candidates from the phone screens are typically invited to on-site interviews, although these can also be conducted virtually. An on-site interview at NVIDIA often consists of multiple rounds, each focusing on different aspects:
   • Technical Interviews: These are deep dives into your technical skills. You might face whiteboard coding sessions, algorithm questions, system design problems, or domain-specific technical questions depending on the role you’re applying for.
   • Behavioral Interviews: These sessions assess your cultural fit and how you approach teamwork, problem-solving, and other soft skills. Expect questions based on your past experiences and how you handle various work scenarios.
   • Managerial Interviews: You might also meet with hiring managers or senior team members who will evaluate your fit within the team and organization, discussing your career aspirations and how they align with NVIDIA’s goals.

Post-Interview Process

6. Feedback and Offer: After completing the interviews, the hiring team reviews your performance across all stages. If you’re successful, you’ll receive feedback and, potentially, an offer. NVIDIA’s offer process includes discussing compensation, benefits, and other employment terms.

Preparation Tips

• Brush Up on Fundamentals: Make sure you have a strong grasp of data structures, algorithms, and system design.
• Practice Coding: Use platforms like LeetCode, HackerRank, and CodeSignal to practice coding problems similar to those you might encounter in the interviews.
• Study NVIDIA-Specific Technologies: Familiarize yourself with NVIDIA’s products and technologies, such as CUDA, deep learning frameworks, and GPUs.
• Prepare for Behavioral Questions: Reflect on your past experiences and be ready to discuss them in the context of teamwork, challenges, and achievements.
  

NVIDIA Internship Program

NVIDIA offers a few options for internship programs, including students, MBA students, and new grads. Interns work on real business problems and are given opportunities to network with NVIDIA employees.

Learn more about their early talent programs here.

NVIDIA Associate Product Manager (APM) Program

NVIDIA doesn't have a traditional APM program, but they do have separate programs for both MBAs and new grads that rotate into different departments. You can check it out on that same early talent page above.

We have a tried-and-true process to help our Bridged readers get hired. It's 5 primary steps, but the meatiest is finding ways to get specific experience. Read on for recommendations.

Identify Your Target Role

Do your research, through Bridged or another company, to identify roles that may align well with your interests and core competencies. You can start here with our review of Best Entry-Level Tech Jobs to explore some options.

NVIDIA is incredibly competitive, so your target career might be a role you see yourself holding in a few years. For example, if you'd like to be a product manager at NVIDIA, that's not usually an entry-level role-- so you'll be competing with other folks who have product management experience.

Explore Ways to Get Experience

There are lots of ways to gain job experience without being on the job. Bridged gives several recommendations in our Job Guides for each job, but you can start by exploring programs like Coursera or Udemy to get valuable, resume-ready certifications from reputable sources.

For NVIDIA specifically, some certifications will be great building blocks towards a role-- but not the entire piece. Don't let a bootcamp fool you into thinking you can immediately land a competitive role at NVIDIA after completion of their $3,000 program. Employers like NVIDIA look for demonstrated experience in the given field at real companies, and the best way to achieve this is by working at a less-competitive tech company in a similar role first. We also mentioned the under-titling before, but feels relevant to bring it up again here.

Use Jobscan to Optimize Your Resume

Even if you're the most impressive person NVIDIA has ever seen, we're sad to report it's part pure luck if you get picked for an interview.

We've written a whole article about this, but you'd be surprised how many impressive resumes NEVER see the eyes of a human! That's because of a pesky-little thing called an Applicant Tracking System (or ATS for short) that scans and ranks resumes based on their matchability to the job descriptions.

For a company like NVIDIA that's getting hundreds of candidates DAILY, it's extremely important to match their ATS. NVIDIA is one of the most prominent users of Workday, which is a finicky software for a bunch of reasons-- but a big one is that it doesn't recognize verb tenses or abbreviations. For example, if you write Product Management Leader instead of Product Manager, when the description says "Product Manager" it will not give you a match point! Read more examples and our full review writeup here.

Use Linkedin Premium to Find and Reach out to NVIDIA Employees & Recruiters

If you think you have what it takes to work at NVIDIA, it never hurts to reach out to an employee for a referral or a recruiter to get noticed. This is especially relevant if you're looking for an internship and can find the person in charge of recruiting interns.
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We recommend a premium subscription because it allows you to view more profiles and send more Inmails. This way you can locate and reach out to the exact recruiter that works on an area that hosts your target roles. Be funny, and emphasize the work you've done to match with your target role, and take feedback gracefully. Mention NVIDIA's values, and how you'd relate. A little human connection works wonders.

And Finally: Be Patient

It's a weird world out there in the job market. Everyone is getting rejections. Don't let it get to you, and keep upskilling in the process. Someday you'll see you're exactly where you need to be, and on the right path. Good luck!

Because of it's extremely competitive nature, it may be hard to get an entry-level tech role at NVIDIA. It's a great target company for an end-game tech role, but may require some other tech experience first. Be persistent, and be sure to spread your applications around to other similar roles to your dream NVIDIA role. You've got this.

Here at Bridged we are huge fans of stacking micro-certifications to achieve desired career results. We're building a product to make your career planning fun and affordable, and we'd love to talk to YOU! Was this article helpful? Did you land an interview at NVIDIA?

Let us know at hello@getbridged.co