Firstly, and importantly, you will need to have a STEM degree. This is a regulatory requirement in order to sit patent examinations.
The UK qualification involves sitting five foundation examinations and four final examinations. Study towards the qualification consists of attending in-house tutorials under the supervision of our Training Academy, as well as some external courses.
Unlike some other IP firms, we do not send our trainees on university courses for the foundation level qualification. We believe our internally run tutorials and sitting the exams set people up better for the final examinations. The success of our internal training is evidenced by our higher than average pass rates. Additionally, year-on-year, our trainees win prizes for achieving some of the highest marks.
Within three years of UK qualification, attorneys also complete a litigation skills course. This course is run by an external training provider at one of our UK offices, over a period of four days, with an examination at the end.
The European qualification consists of a pre-examination followed by four examination papers, which are sat the following year. You need to have two years’ professional experience to sit the European examinations.
It typically takes between 4–6 years to become UK and European qualified (‘Dual Qualification’). By this time you will have the skills and experience to take on much more responsibility with more autonomy, but be confident that you have the support of our partners and other experienced attorneys if needed.
We are very proud of our Training Academy. Year on year our trainees outperform the national average for exam pass rates and frequently win prizes for the highest marks awarded in exams. This is achieved by utilising our in-house expertise to train and develop our trainees to the highest standard. Additionally, the combination of Away Days, online learning, revision courses and peer support provides a comprehensive set of learning opportunities to develop our attorneys of the future.
"The Training Academy not only gives our graduates the opportunity to learn from our market-leading expertise, it also allows our trainees to bond with their peer group and visit our UK offices at the Academy away days. Year on year we make improvements to the Academy to ensure we meet the needs of our trainees and support them towards qualification." Dan Sizer - Academy Oversight Partner
The academy away days are rotated around our UK offices and include an optional dinner and an activity the night before. Patent and trade mark trainees attend the away days together, attending separate morning lectures towards their exams. In the afternoon we focus on personal development skills, covering topics such as business development, personal effectiveness and interpersonal skills.
Our trainees tell us that this is one of the best aspects of the academy as it enables them to build a peer support network that continues long into their career.
In addition to away days, we have an online learning system with a number of modules to help trainees develop. The modules are written and delivered by our qualified attorneys, in line with the exam syllabi. Mobile learning technologies enable trainees to study at a time to suit them, even whilst 'on the go', and provides a comprehensive library of materials.
To become qualified, our trade mark trainees attend university.
For the UK finals, in addition to in-house revision courses, patent trainees can opt to attend external revision courses, which are run during the summer. The option to attend externally run revision courses, is also available for the European exams.
