Patent bar prep on the cheap.

June 25, 2009 11:24 AM

I am considering taking the patent bar. How should I prepare?

The patent bar sparked my interest over in this thread, and now I'm doing a bit of research to see if I should take this on.

The prep courses that I've come across are in the $2000 range. Unfortunately, this isn't really an option for me at the moment. I've also come across this package. It's just $30 for all of the materials, which leaves me skeptical about the package's quality.

What are the options for someone like me (basically a poor college student, only with a degree)? Is this simply not an endeavor for someone with limited financial resources? Are there more frugal options available that are simply being drowned out by the BAR/BRI et al?

Just so you know my price range, I wouldn't be averse to spending about $500 on a course. Besides a couple of part-time jobs, I've got no real commitments, so I've got plenty of free time to put into studying for the upcoming months.

Other than classes, how else should I prepare? I've already downloaded a PDF of the MPEP from the USPTO's web site. Any other materials I need to obtain? Any helpful books out there that might provide some background?

posted by Team of Scientists to education (13 comments total)

I can't tell from your question - you already have a law degree?
posted by jabberjaw at 11:37 AM on June 25

I have an electrical engineering degree. I would be pursuing the patent bar to become a patent agent.
posted by Team of Scientists at 11:39 AM on June 25

Pretty much everyone I know who has taken the patent bar (all lawyers) has studied for it on their own. I'm going to check to see what self-study materials they used. If you are a decent self-motivator, then that might be a good option.
posted by Conrad Cornelius o'Donald o'Dell at 12:20 PM on June 25

Note that one does not have to be a practicing attorney to be a patent agent.

I'd save up and wait until you have the $2000 for the course. See if you can get student loans. Then crush on the materials for three weeks before the exam. When I took the regular bar exam, I worked 8-12, 1-6, 7-9, 55 minutes on, five minutes off. Like clockwork. Needless to say, I passed.
posted by Ironmouth at 12:21 PM on June 25 [1 favorite]

Just checked with a buddy... he used PLI's homestudy materials - and wow, it's the same friggin' price as the live course. What a racket. They do offer a student discount, but it still costs a fortune. PatBar also offers a homestudy course, but still very expensive.

There might also be some leads in this previous question.
posted by Conrad Cornelius o'Donald o'Dell at 12:27 PM on June 25

I am going to plus plus plus Ironmouth's recommendation. I work for a patent law firm and we pay for the patent bar courses for our patent agents; we require them to either take the PLI in person course, or the PLI home study.
posted by MeetMegan at 1:19 PM on June 25

MeetMegan, can you clarify? Your firm hires patent agents before they have passed the bar and then puts them through the prep course? I was under the impression that in order to become an agent one must first pass the bar. Or do you hire patent agents who have already passed the bar and then put them through the course for additional education?
posted by Team of Scientists at 1:26 PM on June 25

I don't think you need an expensive course to pass the patent bar. The USPTO re-uses most of the questions, or at least used to. Carefully study all the old exams you can get your hands on and use your copy of the MPEP to make sure you understand the answers, and you will be fine. I would try and get to the point where you get 85-90% right routinely on old exams.

The exam used to be open-book, fill-in-the-bubble-#2-pencil style. I understand with the current electronic testing for the patent bar, they make an electronic MPEP available during the exam. Try and get your hands on that electronic version or a close facsimile thereof so you can be familiar with how it works.
posted by exogenous at 2:27 PM on June 25

We hire professionals who will become patent agents. They are called "technical advisors" until they pass the patent bar and receive their registration numbers.
posted by MeetMegan at 2:46 PM on June 25

And no, they have not taken the patent bar when we hire them; they must be qualified to take the patent bar, though. We pay for their review prior to the patent bar.
posted by MeetMegan at 2:46 PM on June 25

I haven't done it myself, but you may be able to find used study materials for sale on eBay or Craigslist within your price range. I know that for BarBri, people are often willing to sell their study books on the open market instead of returning them to BarBri because they'll get a higher price for them. I make no representations regarding the legality of doing so (e.g., there may be contractual obligations between the seller and the course provider regarding resale of materials).
posted by EatenByAGrue at 5:53 PM on June 25

Good call on the eBay/craigslist thing. I'll be sure to check that out.

Here's another question: If I decide to pursue a patent agent career right now, I will be entering the field with no professional engineering experience. How much will this affect my employability (of course, this is assuming that the lousy economy wasn't already making employment difficult)? In other words, how much of a disadvantage am I at relative to those with real world electrical engineering experience?
posted by Team of Scientists at 6:26 PM on June 25

I don't think a huge amount. My understanding is that the amount of prior technical experience desired of a patent agent varies from industry to industry, but even then, it's usually more an issue of education than experience. (E.g., to work on pharmaceutical patents, a Ph.D. is preferred, while software doesn't usually require more than a bachelor's degree.) More education/experience is almost always helpful, of course, but I don't think it's a make or break factor. The problem for you is that you're at a disadvantage compared to patent attorneys. If you're really serious about pursuing this as a career, you might want to consider applying to be a patent examiner with the PTO, and working there a few years. If you did that, I think you'd be a very attractive candidate for any patent prosecution firm.

Also, one more thing to keep in mind about buying used study materials. The older they are, the more out of date they are, which may or may not make a difference for the test.
posted by EatenByAGrue at 10:36 AM on June 26