Working at United States Patent & Trademark Office in Alexandria, VA: 40 Employee Job Reviews by Real Employee working in Alexandria, VA Area

"Boring, repetitive, dead end job."

"My boss quit after I'd been there a week, and I had no manager for 9 months. I was forced to beg other managers to risk their own jobs by signing off on my work. I had to train myself in complex legal matters. I resigned after 9 months."

Do you have any tips for others interviewing with this company?

"It's just not worth it you'll die young of stress over hideous mismanagement and stupidity"

What do you like about working at United States Patent & Trademark Office?

"great work environment"

What suggestions do you have for management?

"keep up the good work"

"Helpful but could use better questions"

What do you like about working at United States Patent & Trademark Office?

"The training and education process and the environment"

"Able to see current and emerging technology, very independent, and can work your own hours."

"Great opportunity for take advantage of my skills."

What do you like about working at United States Patent & Trademark Office?

"Motivating the staff to take it to the next level."

Do you have any tips for others interviewing with this company?

"Nothing like working with smart people."

What don't you like about working at United States Patent & Trademark Office?

"Economic down turn cripples my security projects, morale and the use of the work furlough."

What suggestions do you have for management?

"Doing the best they can."

"Well compensated paper pusher"

What do you like about working at United States Patent & Trademark Office?

"The compensation is great, and there is a tremendous amount of prestige that comes with the position."

Do you have any tips for others interviewing with this company?

"Demonstrate a clear understanding and detailed research or experience in a particular patent classification."

What don't you like about working at United States Patent & Trademark Office?

"The work quotas are exceedingly unattainable without working unacceptable levels of voluntary overtime."

What suggestions do you have for management?

"Increase case expectancy times, or reduce requirements for first office actions to allow for greater employee workflow."

"good"

What do you like about working at United States Patent & Trademark Office?

"pay and freedom"

Do you have any tips for others interviewing with this company?

"be a hard worker"

What don't you like about working at United States Patent & Trademark Office?

"nothing"

What suggestions do you have for management?

"decrease the workload"

"Monotonous and very demanding; little interpersonal interaction; depressed and fearful workforce"

What do you like about working at United States Patent & Trademark Office?

"Campus facilites are generally nice with the exception of the actual offices assigned to the exminers"

Do you have any tips for others interviewing with this company?

"No. They take about anyone with a science/engineering degree. We careful which area you work in. Anything in business methods or any other controversial area should be avoided as your management is under extreme pressure not to allow anything to approved for issuance. This makes the job very difficult as your backlog of cases will just build and build, only reduced when claimants give up and allow an application to lapse. Overall, do not work at the US PTO unless you have run out of other options. Best of luck."

What don't you like about working at United States Patent & Trademark Office?

"Monotony of the work. There is little to no variation in daily tasks and the workload in Business Methods was such that performing the job in a proper and ethical manner was not possible. In essence what we did was deny every application without regard to the contents of the application. There was also very little management support in regard to training or general guidance. The examiners' offices are small an cramped. People do not talk to one another and are almost always stressed to meet the production requirements."

What suggestions do you have for management?

"Greatly reduce the workload and simply the review process. Make the review more akin to the European system whereby the accept/deny determination is less stringent and less involved. The European patentability reviews I saw while in the office required less specificity in that the examiner didn't have to supply a point by point review or justification but could generally discuss an application, point out applicable art, and then require the applicant to defend it. Or, we could got to a registration system and have the actual testing of the patent be carried out when an issue arises between parties. But this would present negative issues regarding business planning in that significant investment would be risky with an undefended patent."

"Awful job, great benefits"

What do you like about working at United States Patent & Trademark Office?

"Pay and benefits"

What don't you like about working at United States Patent & Trademark Office?

"It's a sweatshop - you have a quota that doesn't reflect the nature of the jobs involved."

What suggestions do you have for management?

"Get more involved in the realities of the workforce."