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Graduate Data Engineer Jobs in California (NOW HIRING)

AWS Data Engineer

San Francisco, CA · On-site

$134K - $162K/yr

Role: AWS Data Engineer (Python, Dataiku) Location: SFO, CA - Hybrid Job Brief As an AWS Data ... Graduate/Post-Graduate degree in Computer Science or a related field.

Data Engineer

San Jose, CA · On-site

$134K - $161K/yr

... programming against large relational databases leveraging interoperable-linked, patient-level data ... Graduate degree in Epidemiology, Biostatistics, Clinical Informatics, Statistics or related ...

Data Engineer I

Laguna Beach, CA · On-site

$85 - $115/hr

This is an opportunity for a talented graduate to build real-world data systems and grow quickly in ... Leverage AI‑assisted engineering tools to improve development and testing productivity

Posted today

Senior Data Engineer

Carlsbad, CA · On-site

$109K - $148K/yr

Graduate degree in Computer Science or a similar field, or equivalent work experience * 3+ years working in Data Engineering or Data Warehousing * Experience with T-SQL, specifically Microsoft SQL ...

Senior Data Engineer

Carlsbad, CA · On-site +1

$109K - $148K/yr

Graduate degree in Computer Science or a similar field, or equivalent work experience * 3+ years working in Data Engineering or Data Warehousing * Experience with T-SQL, specifically Microsoft SQL ...

Senior Data Engineer

Los Angeles, CA · On-site

$110K - $165K/yr

Overview As a Senior Data Engineer, you will play a pivotal role in driving our data strategy and ... STEM undergraduate degree with 4+ years of work experience or STEM graduate degree with 2+ years of ...

Senior Data Engineer

Los Angeles, CA · On-site

$110K - $165K/yr

Overview As a Senior Data Engineer, you will play a pivotal role in driving our data strategy and ... STEM undergraduate degree with 4+ years of work experience or STEM graduate degree with 2+ years of ...

Head of Data Engineering

San Francisco, CA · On-site +1

$134K - $162K/yr

You will lead a world-class data engineering practice, shape up technical strategy and data ... A graduate degree in Computer Science or a similar subject area It's great but not required if you ...

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Showing results 1-20

Graduate Data Engineer information

See California salary details

$43.9K

$128K

$175.2K

How much do graduate data engineer jobs pay per year?

As of Sep 4, 2026, the average yearly pay for graduate data engineer in California is $128,018.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $113,000.00 and $135,700.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is a graduate data engineer?

A Graduate Data Engineer is an entry-level role focused on designing, building, and maintaining data pipelines and infrastructure. They work with large datasets, ensuring data is collected, processed, and stored efficiently for analysis. Typically, they collaborate with data scientists, analysts, and other engineers to support data-driven decision-making. This role often involves using programming languages like Python or SQL, cloud platforms, and big data technologies. Graduate Data Engineers gain hands-on experience in data engineering principles and tools, helping organizations manage and optimize their data workflows.

What does a graduate data engineer do?

As a Graduate Data Engineer, your daily tasks may include building and maintaining data pipelines, assisting with data cleansing and transformation, and collaborating with data scientists and other engineers to deliver reliable datasets. You'll often work with structured and unstructured data, write scripts to automate data workflows, and help troubleshoot data integration issues as they arise. Throughout your work, you'll be expected to document processes and learn new tools or technologies as the team evolves. This role provides an excellent opportunity to develop hands-on technical skills while working closely with experienced professionals in a collaborative setting.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a graduate data engineer?

A Graduate Data Engineer typically requires a bachelor's degree in computer science, engineering, mathematics, or a related field, along with foundational knowledge of programming, data structures, and database concepts. Familiarity with technologies such as SQL, Python, cloud platforms (e.g., AWS, Azure), and modern data engineering tools like Apache Spark or Hadoop is often expected, and introductory certifications can provide an added advantage. Strong analytical thinking, problem-solving ability, effective communication, and eagerness to learn are valuable soft skills in this role. These skills and qualities are crucial for efficiently building, maintaining, and optimizing data pipelines that support business decision-making.

What are the most commonly searched types of Graduate Data Engineer jobs in California?

The most popular types of Graduate Data Engineer jobs in California are:

What cities in California are hiring for Graduate Data Engineer jobs?

Cities in California with the most Graduate Data Engineer job openings:

Infographic showing various Graduate Data Engineer job openings in California as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 1% As Needed, 84% Full Time, 13% Part Time, and 2% Contract. Highlights an 86% Physical, 3% Hybrid, and 11% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $128,018 per year, or $61.5 per hour.

Data Engineer Graduate (Data Platform Global Live) - 2027 Start

TikTok

San Jose, CA • On-site

$128K - $316K/yr

Full-time

Medical, Dental, Vision, Life, Retirement

Posted 15 days ago


TikTok rating

8.2

Company rating: 8.2 out of 10

Based on 12 frontline employees who took The Breakroom Quiz

105th of 247 rated software companies


Job description

Responsibilities
About the team: The Data Platform Global Live team is dedicated to empowering the growth of TikTok LIVE business through big data. We support our businesses in achieving their missions by building high quality real-time and offline data warehouses, creating various forms of efficient and data-friendly data assets, and exploring and implementing business oriented data solutions leveraging big data technology and LLM. We provide stable and reliable data capabilities for daily operations, analyses, decision-making of TikTok LIVE features, in addition to robust data support to enhance live performance for streamers. As a data engineer in the Global Live team, you will have the opportunity to build, optimize and grow one of the largest data platforms in the world. You'll have the opportunity to gain hands-on experience on all kinds of systems in the data platform ecosystem and explore applications of latest technologies including LLM for data. Your work will have a direct and huge impact on the company's core products as well as hundreds of millions of users. We are looking for talented individuals to join our team. As a graduate, you will get opportunities to pursue bold ideas, tackle complex challenges, and unlock limitless growth. Successful candidates must be able to commit to an onboarding date by the end of the year. Please state your availability and graduation date clearly in your resume. Candidates can apply to a maximum of two positions and will be considered for jobs in the order you apply. The application limit is applicable to our Company and its affiliates' jobs globally. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis - we encourage you to apply early. Responsibilities: - Understanding business problems, designing and implementing easy-to-use data solutions for businesses. - Collaborating with data engineers to understand the data system and provide a smooth data usage experience for data users, including but not limited to data discovery, data usage guidance, and promotion of the data system. - Collaborating with business teams from all over the world to drive user growth and revenue growth.
Qualifications
Minimum Qualifications: - Individuals who are completing or have recently completed a Bachelor's degree in Software Development, Computer Science, Computer Engineering or a related discipline. - Good experience in data solutions, such as data consulting, product development, and data tools creation. - Strong problem-solving and analytical skills with the ability to translate business needs into technical solutions and data metrics. - Have an understanding of data warehousing and the construction ideas of the data system. - Experience with coding (SQL, Python, etc.) - Passionate and self-motivated about using data to drive business decisions. Preferred Qualifications: - Individuals who are completing or have recently completed a Master's degree in Software Development, Computer Science, Computer Engineering or a related discipline.
Job Information
[For Pay Transparency]Compensation Description (Annually)
The base salary range for this position in the selected city is $128000 - $316800 annually.
Compensation may vary outside of this range depending on a number of factors, including a candidate's qualifications, skills, competencies and experience, and location. Base pay is one part of the Total Package that is provided to compensate and recognize employees for their work, and this role may be eligible for additional discretionary bonuses/incentives, and restricted stock units.
Benefits may vary depending on the nature of employment and the country work location. Employees have day one access to medical, dental, and vision insurance, a 401(k) savings plan with company match, paid parental leave, short-term and long-term disability coverage, life insurance, wellbeing benefits, among others. Employees also receive 10 paid holidays per year, 10 paid sick days per year and 17 days of Paid Personal Time (prorated upon hire with increasing accruals by tenure).
The Company reserves the right to modify or change these benefits programs at any time, with or without notice.
For Los Angeles County (unincorporated) Candidates:
Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with all federal, state, and local laws including the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers and the California Fair Chance Act. Our company believes that criminal history may have a direct, adverse and negative relationship on the following job duties, potentially resulting in the withdrawal of the conditional offer of employment:
1. Interacting and occasionally having unsupervised contact with internal/external clients and/or colleagues;
2. Appropriately handling and managing confidential information including proprietary and trade secret information and access to information technology systems; and
3. Exercising sound judgment.
About TikTok
TikTok is the leading destination for short-form mobile video. At TikTok, our mission is to inspire creativity and bring joy. TikTok's global headquarters are in Los Angeles and Singapore, and we also have offices in New York City, London, Dublin, Paris, Berlin, Dubai, Jakarta, Seoul, and Tokyo.
Why Join Us
Inspiring creativity is at the core of TikTok's mission. Our innovative product is built to help people authentically express themselves, discover and connect - and our global, diverse teams make that possible. Together, we create value for our communities, inspire creativity and bring joy - a mission we work towards every day.
We strive to do great things with great people. We lead with curiosity, humility, and a desire to make impact in a rapidly growing tech company. Every challenge is an opportunity to learn and innovate as one team. We're resilient and embrace challenges as they come. By constantly iterating and fostering an "Always Day 1" mindset, we achieve meaningful breakthroughs for ourselves, our company, and our users. When we create and grow together, the possibilities are limitless. Join us.
Diversity & Inclusion
TikTok is committed to creating an inclusive space where employees are valued for their skills, experiences, and unique perspectives. Our platform connects people from across the globe and so does our workplace. At TikTok, our mission is to inspire creativity and bring joy. To achieve that goal, we are committed to celebrating our diverse voices and to creating an environment that reflects the many communities we reach. We are passionate about this and hope you are too.
TikTok Accommodation
TikTok is committed to providing reasonable accommodations in our recruitment processes for candidates with disabilities, pregnancy, sincerely held religious beliefs or other reasons protected by applicable laws. If you need assistance or a reasonable accommodation, please reach out to us at

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