Jul 21 2005
Webster University's College of Arts & Sciences is offering a graduate degree program in Patent Agency. This 36-hour master of arts program, targeted towards working professionals in the technical and scientific fields, is the only known program of its kind nationally.
The M.A. in Patent Agency, which begins this Fall, prepares students to pass the patent bar examination and provides a thorough understanding of intellectual property law; ethics; and patent drafting, prosecution and litigation. Graduates of the program will be ready to secure intellectual property rights for new inventions and processes by preparing, filing, and prosecuting new applications before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
"Webster University's patent agency program is the preferred education option for many employees of corporations and law firms," says David Wilson, dean, College of Arts & Sciences. "Until now, scientists interested in patent agency only had two choices -- take a few narrowly focused bar exam prep courses or commit large sums of time and money in obtaining an overly-broad, full-blown patent law degree."
The global legal community is experiencing a dramatic increase in demand for intellectual property law services, which is resulting in increased demand for patent agents. This demand is particularly felt in the emerging "BioBelt Region" where St. Louis lies at its epicenter. This region is home to almost 400 multinational plant and life sciences enterprises whose business success is largely based on securing patents for their products.
Bryan Wheelock of St. Louis based Harness, Dickey & Pierce, P.L.C., was one of several industry consultants who consulted Webster in designing the new program. He says Webster's program provides both theoretical and practical knowledge needed to enter the field and be well equipped to prepare and prosecute patent cases before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
"The quality of a patent and the protection it gives depends upon the skill of those who prepare and prosecute it," Wheelock says. "Webster's new patent agency program should provide a talented pool of patent professionals that will assist their firms in filing the highest quality patent applications for their clients."
The 36-hour program allows students to complete the program in cohort groups in less than two years. Wilson says that though the program is currently only available at the University's home campus in St. Louis, there are plans under way to begin offering the program at several Webster University extended campus locations such as Boston and Washington D.C. as early as next year.
http://www.webster.edu/