Associate Patent Examiner

Associate Patent Examiner

The Intellectual Property Office (IPO) is the official UK government body responsible for intellectual property (IP) rights including patents, designs, trade marks and copyright. IP touches everything that makes life more enjoyable, easier, safer, and more prosperous. Our work gives researchers, inventors, creators and businesses the confidence to invest their time, energy and money in doing something new.

Turn your STEM degree into a career that shapes the future

As an Associate Patent Examiner, you will combine scientific and technical analysis with legal reasoning.

We are seeking scientists, engineers and mathematicians with enthusiasm and energy for furthering their technical expertise to join our development programme. Our personalised training programme will build on your existing STEM knowledge and enable you to specialise in innovation hot-spots, such as artificial intelligence, cyber security, telecommunications and quantum computing.

For the first two months of employment, you will be required to work onsite in Newport full-time five days a week.

For the following four months of employment, you will be required to work onsite in Newport for four days each week. This will give you a great introduction to the IPO and help you build contacts and relationships to support your future career.

Once this six-month period has passed, attendance will be in line with IPO hybrid working arrangements where staff are currently expected to spend at least 20% of their time working onsite in Newport.

The IPO holds a visa sponsor licence however; this role is not eligible for sponsorship under the Skilled Worker route. Candidates will therefore need to have an existing right to work in the UK at the time of application.

What we offer

Personalised training and support

You do not need previous patent experience. We will provide the scientific, technical and legal training you need through formal courses, mentoring and on-the-job training.

The initial full-time training course starts on Monday 20th September 2027 and lasts eight weeks. It will be delivered in person at the Newport Office through seminars, practical demonstrations, coursework and tutorials, giving you the opportunity to learn alongside fellow recruits and get to know your colleagues.

A clear career path

After two to five years, you will progress from Associate Patent Examiner to Patent Examiner. Following further development, a further non-competitive promotion to Senior Patent Examiner is available, offering the opportunity to become a subject-matter expert and leader within the division.

A collaborative STEM community

You will work with colleagues who share your interest in science, technology and engineering, exchanging knowledge and drawing on the expertise of a diverse team.

Tune into our webinar!

Hear from three of the IPO's patent examiners to find out where you, our STEM

graduates, can fit in!

Intellectual Property Office Hub , Gradcracker - Careers for STEM Students

Additional information

To find out more about the Patent Examining career check out our Patent Career Site

Page here IPO Opportunities , Civil Service Careers

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Ability, Experience and Technical skills.

Stage 1 – Pre sift testing The following pre sift test will need to be completed and passed before your application will be seen by the panel: Civil Service Verbal test

Applicants to note:

There are no time limits for the completion of tests.

Please ensure you complete the test with enough time to fully complete and submit your application before the closing date.

Full instructions will be given at the start of the test.

The deadline for completing the tests is the same as the application deadline: 11/01/2027 at 23:55

Stage 2 – Sift

An initial sift of applications will be carried out to create a shortlist. This will be based on the evidence provided for the following Success Profile elements:

Experience

Your 500 word Personal statement will demonstrate your Experience against the listed person specification criteria

Technical

Provide a 250-word statement that demonstrates your technical ability. Please evidence your established knowledge in science, engineering, maths, computing, telecommunications, or a related field, detailing how you have applied and embedded your technical knowledge in practical situations, for example through research project, industrial or laboratory experience.

Stage 3 – Interviews

If invited to interview, Behaviours, Experience, Ability and Technical based questioning will be used

Please note candidates that proceed to the interview stage will be required to complete a Ability written assessment. Details will be provided in the invite to interview information.

Specific information regarding the Success Profile elements that will be assessed at interview will be contained within the interview invitation.

Interviews for this role will be carried out from week commencing 15th February 2026 and will run for 3 weeks in person at our Newport Office.

This recruitment campaign will keep a reserve list for 9 months. If you meet the requirements for this role but aren't offered after passing the interview, you'll be placed on the reserve list. If a suitable position opens up during this time, we will reach out to individuals in merit order.

The Recruitment team operational hours are 09:00 to 17:00 Monday – Friday excluding bank holidays.

Applicants to note: CVs sent direct to the IPO will not be accepted.

This post is being advertised to Internal, across Government and external candidates at the same time.

Incomplete and/or late submissions will not be accepted or considered. Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

We do not routinely reimburse travel expenses for candidates, however if participating in the selection process would cause you undue financial hardship or if it restricts your ability to participate, please contact the recruitment team for more information.

In line with Government guidance, successfully appointed candidates will need to provide documents for our Right to Work checks. Information on this will be sent within the invite to interview text.

If you require a reasonable adjustment at any stage of the recruitment process, then please let the recruitment team know via;recruitment@ipo.gov.uk

In the event of a high volume of applications, the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) reserves the right to raise the minimum qualifying score at sift to manage volumes and ensure a proportionate and fair assessment process.

Please be aware that only one application per candidate is permitted for each recruitment campaign. Multiple applications, including those made using different accounts, may result in your application being withdrawn or rejected at any stage of the process.

For more information on the IPO’s terms and conditions, please review the attached IPO Modernised Terms and Conditions document attached at the bottom of this advert.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.