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[MSEE]

I have a BSEE and will be graduating this December. I will be working at a major research institute and will get a free master's degree. should I go for depth in a discipline by getting an MSEE, or should I get an MSCS in an effort to be able to work on more patent work when I go in to said field? Also below is my general plan of attack on the patent industry  please comment with your thoughts...

1) Graduate in Dec 2009, with BSEE. (from a very small state school, hence reasoning for getting masters from big schools like USC, Georgia Tech, or Columbia)

2) Work at academic research institute while getting Master's.

3) Pass patent bar while getting master's.

4) Look for patent agent work while finishing master's.

5) Finish master's and get a job as a patent agent.

6) Study my butt off the for LSAT ( got a 160 on first diagnostic and have a 3.8 UGPA) in an attempt for near a 170.

7) See about going part time to Georgetown or George Washington or George Mason (I like George's) while being a patent agent to get a lot of exp for when I graduate.

graduate and make lots of money.......

 

I guess the main question is would I be better off doing that or going through law school full time at a place like Emory (with hopefully a lot of school paid for) after getting a year or two of patent agent exp and do part time patent work?

As a newbie to the website all opinions would be greatly appreciated...

Note: I am from Atlanta and would really like to go to school/practice here. But DC has the best PT schools

[UVAgal4]

If I could do it over again, I think I would skip the master's (MS EE) and go straight to law school.

[xmnr]

If you were smart enough to become an engineer, you are smart enough NOT to become a lawyer

Do the masters degree.  If you decide to go into law, you'll want it for the prestige whoring.  Also, if you go into BIGLAW, it may be your only exit plan.

Either way, do your research before you make the plunge into law.  You may find patent law to be quite unrewarding compared to actual engineering, or you may find you hate working with lawyers. 

graduate and make lots of money.......

http://www.elsblog.org/the_empirical_legal_studi/2008/07/how-the-cravath.html

If I could do it over again, I think I would skip the master's (MS EE) and go straight to law school.

That's easy to say when you never took the LSAT and jumped the pond to France after graduation...  Also, UVA is lame (Go Hokies!).

[bald & chained]

If you get an MS, it will have a very minor benefit for patent law, if at all. If you are dead set on a career in patents, then I'd skip MS at all.  That said, you better be sure about going the patent law route, since it would be hard to get back in the engineering.

There is also something to be said about opportunity cost of spending time to get MS and/or working as an engineer while you could be finishing up your law degree.  For example,  I have a Master's degree and I worked as an engineer of a few years after graduation.  I don't regret it, really, but it's unlikely that my industry experience + MEng made me much more attractive to the firms vs someone with just a BS in EE. And now, I have to occasionally take orders from folks who are either my age or younger, but went to law school straight out of college.  I am just glad I didn't stick around engineering for 10+ years, since the change between engineering and law is not smooth at all and you get very little credit, both objectively and subjectively, for your previous experience.

[MSEE]

Thanks for all the responses, as far as wanting to actually be a patent attorney I have spoken to numerous patent attorneys and have a family friend who is a partner in a big firm and is guiding me along, as far as the prestige whoring that is kind of what she said about getting the masters. As far as if I don't like big law, the added benefit to the masters is that I can go teach at my alma mater, I am very close friends with the dean of engineering, so i have a bail out if necessary. So I guess to keep the conversation going, should I go full time to get done fast, or go part time to get more exp. In law as a patent agent? And lastly with reference to making lots of money, I am impressed with anything over 80k.

[MYK]

I'd recommend going in whatever way minimizes your expenses.  If you get a full-tuition scholarship to go full-time, do it;  if you end up working as an agent at a firm that will pay for your part-time law school, go that way.  It sounds like you have a couple of years before you have to worry about the decision in any case, and maybe other factors will decide your plans for you by then.

[MSEE]

yeah thats essentially what i have been told. and is also what I will do. i also had one more question. is the prestige of the school as important in patent law? versus say bankruptcy or international law?

[physicsnerd]

If you are wondering how much an MS will help you might look at some of the job boards.  You'll note that there is an increasing frequency of jobs "preferring an MS or Ph.D."  People tend to claim that an MS or Ph.D. doesn't help and their analysis is relatively flawed.  They are basing this assumption on the fact that THEY got a job without one. The truth is, yes, you may absolutely be completely fine without an MS.  The other side of the equation is someone with advanced experience or advanced degrees in their technical field, when all other things are equal, will absolutely get look at more closely than someone without the advanced degree. That said, you might get along completely fine without it.  I am just anticipating a big law patent crunch and I see a lot of down sizing in the area.  That means anything you have to put you ahead of the curve helps. 

[bald & chained]

well, I think that getting an MS just as another credential for patent law is actually shortsighted. You say that "all things being equal," MS is better and I agree, but there is inherent opportunity cost for getting an MS.  The main goal of any patent law rookie is getting that first job.  So if your goal was just getting a job in a patent firm, you'd be better off trying to get experience in patent law as an agent rather than spending 1-2 years on getting a Masters.  Now if MS becomes a requirement for getting a job in EE patent prosecution, than it's a different story, but I just don't see this happening yet.

[MSEE]

that is kind of the mentality to have it. Also given the small size of my school and the dominance of Georgia Tech in the region, I think it will kind of make things lean a little more in my favor in the interview process. The typical Patent Attorney here went to GT then Georgia State, whereas I will come from my small state school, go to tech for the MS and hopefully go to Emory for law, which I think would put me ahead. (assuming grades and other stuff is otherwise similar) I will also get the "GT" name in the fact that I work at the Georgia Tech Research Institute while I get my MS. The other aspect will be the portability of the MS. If for whatever reason I end up in say California, my Law school would be fine, but my engineering degree wouldn't even get me to an interview, but if I had the MS then I think my chances would improve twofold in that it will be an advanced degree and from a major institution.. thanks again for all the help you guys. it is invaluable. lastly, how hard is it to get a job as a patent agent now with absolutely no exp?

[ab]

re: that last question: very, very hard.

[smgsmc]

that is kind of the mentality to have it. Also given the small size of my school and the dominance of Georgia Tech in the region, I think it will kind of make things lean a little more in my favor in the interview process. The typical Patent Attorney here went to GT then Georgia State, whereas I will come from my small state school, go to tech for the MS and hopefully go to Emory for law, which I think would put me ahead. (assuming grades and other stuff is otherwise similar) I will also get the "GT" name in the fact that I work at the Georgia Tech Research Institute while I get my MS. The other aspect will be the portability of the MS. If for whatever reason I end up in say California, my Law school would be fine, but my engineering degree wouldn't even get me to an interview, but if I had the MS then I think my chances would improve twofold in that it will be an advanced degree and from a major institution.. thanks again for all the help you guys. it is invaluable. lastly, how hard is it to get a job as a patent agent now with absolutely no exp?

Get hold of someone at the IP dept at Georgia Tech.  They most likely farm out work to outside counsel.  Perhaps someone in the IP dept can exert some leverage on your behalf to get you an internship with an outside counsel (money talks, assuming Georgia Tech has a good sized portfolio).

[MSEE]

I will keep that in mind. Is it likely that my first patent gig will be something unpaid and part time? and once you get some experience, do things get easier at all for getting patent agent jobs?

[MSEE]

I wanted to let you guys know that I managed to get a part time unpaid internship with a small boutique firm in my area to gain hands on experience while I finish my Bachelor's. I will take the Patent Bar in the Spring if I feel comfortable that I can study hard and pass. I have begun law school applications and will most likely attend a lower ranked school (65) that is in the city. (barring substantial money from a school like emory) There is also a very small chance I will commute (an hour one way) to UGA for something like the first year then transfer to Emory. But all that is in due time. I have my LSAT this Dec. and will be studying hard until then. Thanks for all the help and guidance.

[igbojuju]

There is also a very small chance I will commute (an hour one way) to UGA for something like the first year then transfer to Emory. But all that is in due time. I have my LSAT this Dec. and will be studying hard until then. Thanks for all the help and guidance.

 ???Transferring from UGA -> EMORY = MADNE$$. Eigher go from UGA to TOP 10, or don't transfer at all.