“Having completed a Masters and PhD in Mechanical Engineering (specialising in biomedical engineering), I was faced with the decision about what to do next. I was considering doing a law conversion course, when a family friend who was a solicitor asked whether I’d considered becoming a Patent Attorney. Given that I hadn’t even known such a profession existed, my answer was “no, but what is one of those?”
After a discussion with the family friend I did some more research and thought that it might be a job I would enjoy. I was fortunate that a couple of Patent Attorneys agreed to chat to me about what the job entails, how to enter the profession and so on. I then began applying for jobs, and started in the profession in 2000.
I work in a private practice firm, and the work I do is varied and challenging, as well as being extremely rewarding. A few years after qualification I reduced my hours so that I could balance bringing up very young children with the career I love; my firm has been very accommodating in this aspect. However, I have relatively recently increased my hours and taken on additional responsibilities alongside my “fee earning” patent work. These responsibilities include managing a team of paralegals and working on strategy for a particular aspect of the business – management is certainly a new challenge, but one I am loving.
In short, in this profession I feel that I am always learning new things, be those technical/legal/management or personal, and that there is always the opportunity to learn and experience more. That is exactly what I wanted from my career.”
Patent Attorney / Boult Wade Tennant / Reading