Most questions on the patent bar come from the Manual of Patent Examining Procedure (MPEP) or the America Invents Act (AIA). Applicants can use a digital copy of the MPEP, but no other materials are allowed. Since the test relates to practice before the USPTO, it focuses more on patent applications than litigation.The patent bar examination is now entirely online, and candidates receive an unofficial score at the end of the test. So you'll know whether you passed before walking out the door! Official results are mailed out a few weeks later.
Exam Basics
An applicant who is qualified to sit for the Exam will be informed by the PTO and given at least a 90-day (3-month, more or less) window to take the Exam. The window will start five (5) days from the date they mail you the letter (so that you have time to receive it).
You will be given, in that letter, several ways to contact the test administration company, Prometric, to arrange to take the test. The test must be taken at one of Prometric’s over 400 sites throughout the United States. Once you have received your confirmation, you can use a toll-free number or the Prometric Website to arrange your test date and location within that window. (If you miss the window to take the Exam, for any reason, you can pay an additional fee to extend your window.)
The Office is recommending, and we heartily concur that, because of this window, you should start your preparations even before you submit your application.
Prometric administers many other computer-based exams, so you shouldn’t worry that they won’t handle your Exam professionally. Although there is the occasional “horror story” (usually involving something unavoidable like the examinee kicking out the power plug of the workstation), most takers report positive testing experiences. You can check the Prometric site (above) for further information on their locations, policies, etc.
You must appear at the correct Prometric site at the time you have agreed to. (Late and “no show” policies are discussed on the Prometric site.) You must bring a current photo ID (valid state driver’s license, etc., previously identified in your application) in order to be allowed to sit for the Exam. They may also take an electronic photo of you and/or fingerprints.
No carry-in items of any sort (book-bags, cellphones, laptops, notes, MPEPs, etc.) are allowed into the Exam site. Each candidate will be issued a pencil and scratch paper (or the like) which must be fully accounted for and turned in at the end of the Exam.
Each candidate is allowed up to 15 minutes for a tutorial on the computer (before you start the Exam) to learn the Exam system (e.g., how to skip and return to a question or mark it for later review).
The Exam is comprised of two 3-hour blocks of 50, 5-answer multiple-choice questions, with a 1-hour lunch break in between sessions. That is, a total of 100 questions. But only 90 of the questions count. The other 10 are “beta test” questions, which the Office is testing for future administrations. These 10 questions don’t count toward your score. They are only scored for internal, Office purposes. The trouble is that it is not always apparent (and never intentionally apparent) which questions are beta test questions, so you have to give each question its due consideration, but no more…lest you waste time on a question that doesn’t count.
The format of the questions is much the same as the prior, written Exams. Even the content of the questions is much the same, with some notable exceptions that we’ll discuss during the course. Although they may move to another scheme at a later date, currently, the questions are weighted equally, and will be drawn randomly (except for the distribution aspect noted above). The system also does not draw particular questions later in the Exam based on your answers to prior questions. The good news is that they are striving to eliminate the “double negative” questions (i.e., “which of the following is not true…”), and there won’t be multiple questions based on the same fact pattern (i.e., each question will be completely discrete).
There is a clock on the screen that gives you the elapsed time in each session.
The Exam room will be proctored and/or videotaped.
You will have to sign out and sign in for the lunch break, and any other break you decide to take during the day. (You’ll also have to turn in your scratch paper at each break and at the end of the test.)
There will be an optional evaluation form that you can fill out at the end of your Exam (not included in the Exam time), giving your feedback on the test and the test site.
Scope
The PTO posts to its Website what version of the MPEP and what other documents are currently being tested. The testable materials will be available in electronic form at the Exam site on the same terminal screen. The electronic MPEP is indexed and keyword searchable, but you can only open one document/chapter at a time. (You cannot search the entire book.) The PTO has said that it will not test new laws or rules without at least 90 days advance notice.
Results
In most cases, you will get an “instant preliminary result” as soon as you finish the computer-based Exam. These “instant preliminary results” have proven very reliable. You will get the official letter mailed to you a day or two later.
The passing score on the Exam is 70% correct. But keep in mind that only 90 out of the 100 questions you will see count. The other 10 are “beta test” questions that the Office scores only for internal purposes. You have to get 63 of the 90 questions that count correct to pass the Exam. (Getting the beta test questions right doesn’t help.)
If you pass, you won’t get your score. If you fail, you will get a score, but the only way to find out what questions you got right or wrong is to go to the Patent Office to look at your Exam. They will show you the questions you answered, and the correct answer for each, but there is no explanation and no right of appeal. Still, we generally recommend that you do schedule one of these review sessions if you are not successful on the Exam.
If you fail the Exam, there will be a 30-day waiting period before re-taking the Exam.
Check out Reflections of the Patent Bar Exam