A free Careers in Ideas online masterclass
Wednesday 30 June 2021
4 – 5.30 pm
If you were interested in a career as a patent or trade mark attorney, this was the event for you!
We heard from experienced attorneys and recruiters about what they look for in candidates, with top tips about the CV and covering letter, the interview (including online interviews), and the kinds of tasks you might be faced with when you meet a prospective employer, for example case studies, problem solving and presentations. There was also advice on finding an employer that’s a good fit for you, and perspectives from people who joined the profession relatively recently.
In the second part of the event, delegates had a chance to meet with the panellists in smaller, informal groups and ask their own questions.
This online masterclass was a re-run of our popular Careers in Ideas Week event in November 2020. It was aimed in particular at university students who want to (or think they might want to) train as patent or trade mark attorneys, to help them secure their first position in the profession.
The panellists
- Julie Barrett, owner of Purposive Step Consulting, patent attorney and IP business and careers consultant
- Gemma Christie, patent attorney and director at Keltie and Vice Chair at Farnborough College of Technology
- Sally Lingjun Gao, trainee patent attorney at Mathys & Squire
- Tom Hailes, trainee patent attorney at Beck Greener and member of our IP Futures committee
- Joseph Letang, trade mark attorney and partner at Dehns
- Carol Nyahasha, trade mark attorney at Baron Warren Redfern
- Jo Spreckley, Training & Development Manager at Marks & Clerk
- Amy Walker, Careers Manager at The University of Law
- Sheila Wallace, patent attorney and partner at Marks & Clerk
The event was chaired by IP Inclusive’s Lead Executive Officer, Andrea Brewster.
Follow-up resources
You can access a recording of the plenary panel discussion (the first hour or so of the event) here.
Panellist Julie Barrett has also kindly made available some slides about CV drafting and interview selection tasks, which you can download here. Plus there’s a great presentation about video interviews, recorded by panellist Amy Walker from The University of Law, available here. We’re grateful to both Julie and Amy for sharing their expertise in this way.
Cost
This event was free. So are all our resources. We think it’s important to keep Careers in Ideas and IP Inclusive the right side of the paywall.
That said, we do need money to keep the show on the road, so if you enjoyed the event please consider contributing to our 2021-22 fundraising campaign. For individual ad hoc donations, our crowdfunding page is here. Or for more information – including for corporate sponsors – visit our general fundraising page here.