Looking for advise

[snakeo2]

Hello,

First time poster, let me apologize in advance if this question has been asked before, but I'm considering taking the Patent bar exam and would appreciate any recommendation on preparation material. There seem to be  hundreds of books promising you a pass grade if you buy their study guides. I have downloaded the MPEP from the USPTO website, but was wondering if there is a guide as to what chapters I need to focus on...or do I simply study everything? How much time should I prepare prior to taking the exam?   I have a BSEE and I'm currently working on a MS on Construction Management. Thanks

[xyzzy]

2100, 1800, 700.

I'm studying for the exam now and have found the PLI course helpful.  (eBay, ~$500).  Some have reported using only free material & past exams to prepare, with successful results.  The exam reuses a lot of questions, so I think this is a sound approach.  I chose to purchase the PLI material mainly to keep me on task.  The lectures & printed material do a good job of distilling the info you need to know.

Of course, I haven't taken the actual exam yet, so what do I know, right?  I'm doing well on past exams, at least.

[ME]

I passed the patent bar recently.

I used the PRG course and passed on the first try. It is expensive, but it works.

The videos are really boring to watch, but are informative. The patent practive books that come with the course are intersting (if you are interested in IP law). I found them useful to read. After watching the videos I could answer their test questions correctly about 40 to 50% of the time.

I did lots and lots of practice questions that came with PRG's software. I read the MPEP when trying to do the questions.

I think that answering old questions is the best way to study.

Cheers

[snakeo2]

Thank you both for your suggestions. I will definitely take them into consideration. Me, could you tell me how long did you prepare for before taking the exam? Also, I'm not familiar with PRG, could you provide a link ? Thanks in advance.

[ChiefJRoberts]

Thank you both for your suggestions. I will definitely take them into consideration. Me, could you tell me how long did you prepare for before taking the exam? Also, I'm not familiar with PRG, could you provide a link ? Thanks in advance.

I took PLI at home course and it took me about 4 months of part time study (and passed). I would say about 2 months full time would work as well. By part time, I think I spent about 2-3 hours at night plus more study time on weekends.

[ME]

The link for PRG is:
http://www.patentresources.com/

I think that I spent an hour or so a day for about 6 months, with an increase to mabye 3 hours a day about a month and a half before I took the test. The final week I worked on practice questions full time.

Cheers

[Yak]

I also did PLI home review part time.  I think most patent bar review courses suggest spending between 150 and 200 hours of total study time. 

[Agent_X]

The program you choose is not as important as the work ethic you bring to the table.  If you have never seen patent related information it will look like a foreign language (and a boring one at that).

I used patbar.com because it was cheap and provided a self study program I could do at my own pace.

The recorded material was monotonous and boring but it was on point regarding how to prepare for the test.

I also suggest the following website: http://patentbarquestions.com/Main_Page

[eeme]

Hello,

First time poster, let me apologize in advance if this question has been asked before, but I'm considering taking the Patent bar exam and would appreciate any recommendation on preparation material. There seem to be  hundreds of books promising you a pass grade if you buy their study guides. I have downloaded the MPEP from the USPTO website, but was wondering if there is a guide as to what chapters I need to focus on...or do I simply study everything? How much time should I prepare prior to taking the exam?   I have a BSEE and I'm currently working on a MS on Construction Management. Thanks

I was studying for the patent bar also and thought http://mypatentbar.commypatentbar.com was a great companion to the mpep. I also heard there are some fine details that can sometimes be wrong when you use study guides, so I decided to just read 1500 page mpep itself. It helped my scores and gave me a decent instinct for how things work. I didn't take the exam since I was just hired but I was getting 60-70% on the practice exams (70% needed for passing) after about 5 months of consistent studying.