Patent work

Have a look at Prospects and targetjobs to find out what roles in patent work involve and how to get into them.

To become a trainee patent attorney you’ll need a degree in a science, engineering, technology or a mathematics based subject.

Trainee patent attorneys complete most of their training on the job. Alongside their work they will prepare for and sit exams to join the Intellectual Property Regulation Board (IPReg). This is the regulatory body for the profession.

Have a look at the job profiles in this sector on Prospects and targetjobs. Find out more about what these roles involve and how to get into them. These are just some of the profiles available:

• Patent attorney
• Patent examiner
• Trade mark attorney

• knowledge of scientific and engineering techniques and principles
• excellent written and oral communication skills
• the ability to explain complex technical ideas clearly and concisely
• a high level of attention to detail and accuracy
• an understanding of legal and commercial issues
• the ability to take on responsibility and work independently

Patent attornies are generally well paid. As a trainee patent attorney, you can earn in the region of £28,500 to £37,000. Salaries for newly qualified chartered patent attorneys (CPA) or European patent attorneys (EPA) could range from £65,000 to £73,500.

At partner, director or head of patents level, you could earn in excess of £105,000.

To learn more about salaries, use the following resources: 

• our Discover your Earning Potential Pathway offers access to The Pay Index. This shows you how salaries vary across different roles, industries and locations 
• job profiles, such as those listed on Prospects or targetjobs 
• vacancy sites such as Glassdoor and LinkedIn 

For information about how to negotiate a salary, visit Handling job offers. 

• browse our Work Experience and Graduate Employment directories. See where our students and graduates have had work experience, or been employed
• use LinkedIn’s Alumni tool to find out what Newcastle graduates are doing now. You could ask to connect with them, to gain advice and insights into their career. See Newcastle Alumni on LinkedIn to help you get started or watch our quick tutorial on Getting inspiration from others [3:13]
• attend alumni events, such as Newcastle Develop, to hear directly from our graduates
• sign up for mentoring support with  and The 1 Hour Project. These aim to match students with industry professionals who can provide invaluable insights. Register to be connected for a one-hour meeting
• attend events. Hear about graduate jobs, placement schemes, build your network and ask questions

Searching for reviews online can be a useful way to get an idea of what to expect from certain roles or employers. Reviews are written by employees with different opinions about what makes a good employer.

Use the following review sites for inspiration and insight into the recruitment process:

• RateMyPlacement - placement year reviews written by students.
• The Job Crowd – graduate job reviews
• Glassdoor – company reviews from employees

Read career guides for this sector such as:

• Inside Careers - company profiles and careers advice in association with the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys, includes a Profession overview
• The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) - guide to working in patenting

Use online magazines and journals to follow news from your industry. Reading about trends and developments is useful for applications and interviews.

• New Scientist - includes recent news stories in patent work and intellectual property
• Intellectual Property Office: Careers

Attend events to hear directly from professionals in the industry.

See also our recruitment events and employer & sector insights.

Use social media to find industry insights

Join sector-specific groups on LinkedIn to keep up to date. Posts often include news, events and opportunities. You can also find useful insights on careers on Twitter and TikTok. Treat these with caution, as not all content may be accurate.

Find out more about  

Consider joining a relevant professional body or industry network

Professional bodies often:

• run networking events
• have specialist groups you could join
• post vacancies on behalf of their members
• have member directories, useful for speculative applications

Key organisations include:

• Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA)
• Institute of Trade Mark Attorneys
• World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)

Finding professional bodies worldwide

GoinGlobal’s country guides include details of professional bodies. Find them under ‘Professional and Personal Networking’ on each individual country guide.

• Intellectual Property Office
• European Patent Office

Use our resources to get started: 

• MyCareer - search for internships and placements in the North East, UK and overseas. Register/log in to access vacancies and sign up for personalised email alerts  
• Internships, placements & shadowing - links to vacancy sites 
• Global work experience - for internships or placements abroad 

Search the following external sites:

• Inside Careers: Patent attorneys - internships and placements
• European Patent Office - internships and traineeships for graduates
• WIPO: Internship opportunities - summer internship program

The Careers Service runs flexible term-time and summer internships with local employers and on campus. NCL internships are aimed at all students, from any stage:

• search for these under Vacancies on MyCareer. 

Access GoinGlobal for internships in over 120 global locations, updated daily. Search for opportunities in the local language, as well as in English. You can also use their country guides to find:  

• additional vacancy websites  
• CV, application and interview advice   
• Advice on living and working in different countries and cities around the world.  

If you’re looking for inspiration, try searching our NU Work Experience Directory. You can see where our students have had internships and placements in the last five years. To see all results in a search category, keep the search field blank. 

The resources in this section advertise both graduate jobs and graduate schemes. See our graduate jobs page to understand the difference between them. 

For graduate schemes, apply as early as possible.  

UK applications typically open early in the academic year from September or October. Some close as early as November-December. Many employers close applications as soon as their places are filled.  

This is the most common way to become a patent attorney, as the role will include your training.

Use our resources to get started: 

• MyCareer - search for internships and placements in the North East, UK and overseas. Register/log in to access vacancies and sign up for personalised email alerts. You can filter by occupational area (eg 'using languages'), vacancy type and location.
• Internships, placements & shadowing - links to vacancy sites
• Global work experience - for internships or placements abroad

Patent work specific vacancy sites:

• Inside Careers: Chartered Patent Attorneys gives details of graduate vacancies with patent employers.
• IP Jobs
• CIPA - lists jobs advertised in the latest supplement of the CIPA journal
• EPO: Jobs - vacancies and information about working for the European Patent Office
• Civil Service job search – includes opportunities in the Intellectual Property Office
• The Institute of Trade Mark Attorneys - advertised appointments within the field

See  for details of overseas vacancy sites. 

Access GoinGlobal for job adverts in over 120 global locations, updated daily. Search for opportunities in the local language, as well as in English. You can also use their country guides to find:  

• additional vacancy websites  
• CV, application and interview advice   
• advice on living and working in different countries and cities around the world

Start by identifying organisations you are interested in. Our guide to finding organisations below can help. Then use the following steps to approach them speculatively about possible opportunities: 

1. Identify a contact name to address your cover letter to. Call or email to find out who handles recruitment within the organisation. Or, find a key contact in the department you want to work in. 
2. Send them a tailored CV and cover letter. Express your enthusiasm for the sector. Show that you have researched the company. 
3. Follow up your speculative application with a phone call, or email, around a week later. This shows you are serious and motivated. 
4. If your application was unsuccessful, ask for feedback or advice, and keep trying! 

You can use this approach at any point in the year. We recommend that you: 

• start your research as early as possible to gather relevant contacts 
• contact organisations around three months before you want the opportunity to begin 

• find organisations on MyCareer. Select ‘search' then 'organisations’
• use the business directories and databases on our Researching employers page
• search for companies on LinkedIn. The Find Alumni tool shows you where Newcastle graduates are currently working
• browse our Work Experience and Graduate Employment directories. See where our students and graduates have had work experience, or been employed

Use the resources below to find organisations in the North East, UK and worldwide. 

North East organisations

International Newcastle - member directory

• targetjobs - search employers by sector, eg software engineering or technology 
• CIPA Directory of Patent Attorneys
• Inside Careers provide a list of employers.
• ABPI provides a list of pharmaceutical recruiters
• Professional body websites sometimes include member directories, which are helpful for finding employers. 

Search GoinGlobal’s employer directory for company information in 196 countries. Their country guides list professional bodies around the world. 

GoinGlobal’s country guides include details of recruitment agencies in specific countries. They are listed under the following headings:  

• staffing agencies and temporary help firms  
• executive recruiters and search firms  

Recruitment agencies may not operate in the same way in different countries. In the UK agencies are free for job seekers, but this may not be the case elsewhere. Explore the terms and conditions of an agency before signing up to use them.  

An MSc or PhD isn’t always required. It can be an advantage as it shows significant technical understanding.

To become a patent attorney, you will need to complete a series of exams and professional training. 

Many firms offer training programmes which support graduates to develop knowledge and skills. These help in completing the qualifications and finding work as a patent attorney.

More information about qualifications and training is available on Inside Careers.

To qualify you'll need to complete a postgraduate course and practice course. You will also need two years' work experience under a registered trademark attorney.

Qualifying can take about four years and be expensive, although most employers provide funding.

Trainees can be employed in specialist trademark or patent attorney firms. They can also be in employed in trademark departments of general law firms.

More information about qualifications and training is on Prospects and Inside Careers.

You may also be interested in Legal Professions or Science Careers Outside The Lab – which includes regulatory affairs.