I have B.S./M.S. degrees in optical engineering and 6 years of engineering experience. I have no direct patent prosecution experience (only the occasional invention disclosure, etc, though these experiences are what drove me to apply to law schools). I currently live in upstate NY.
So far the best school I've gotten into is Fordham's Part time program, which I'm seriously considering. So my questions are:
1. If I pass the patent bar this spring and enroll next fall, how hard will it likely be for me to get a tech spec or patent agent job with a good firm in NYC while going to school at night?
2. Assuming I don't/can't get a job from #1 and transfer to the full time program, what might my odds be of getting a patent attorney position at a good NYC firm after graduation?
3. What would you guys do if in my shoes? I don't hate the engineering I do, but I think the upside of being a patent attorney is pretty big. Thoughts?
If you skim through this "becoming a patent agent" board and also the career/law schools boards, you'll see in the posts there's a lot of negativity right now about finding an agent slot anywhere.
But assuming you're at B&L (or whoever), what law firms do your employer use for patent work, and are they in NYC? You've got time, is there any way to possibly network your way into a firm using work contacts? Or, at a minimum, could you use contacts at work to get a real 1st-person view of the employment landscape from your company's firm lawyers?
