Patent agent vs student attorney

The differences between patent agents and student attorneys can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a patent agent and a student attorney. Additionally, a student attorney has an average salary of $105,185, which is higher than the $65,466 average annual salary of a patent agent.

The top three skills for a patent agent include intellectual property, patent prosecution and law firm. The most important skills for a student attorney are legal issues, legal memoranda, and social security.

Patent agent vs student attorney overview

	Patent Agent	Student Attorney
Yearly salary	$65,466	$105,185
Hourly rate	$31.47	$50.57
Growth rate	10%	10%
Number of jobs	25,562	15,111
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 56%	Bachelor's Degree, 66%
Average age	46	46
Years of experience	4	4

Patent agent vs student attorney salary

Patent agents and student attorneys have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Patent Agent	Student Attorney
Average salary	$65,466	$105,185
Salary range	Between $34,000 And $124,000	Between $69,000 And $159,000
Highest paying City	New York, NY	-
Highest paying state	New York	-
Best paying company	Finnegan Henderson Farabow Garrett & Dunner	-
Best paying industry	Professional	-

Differences between patent agent and student attorney education

There are a few differences between a patent agent and a student attorney in terms of educational background:

	Patent Agent	Student Attorney
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 56%	Bachelor's Degree, 66%
Most common major	Chemistry	Law
Most common college	Stanford University	Stanford University

Patent agent vs student attorney demographics

Here are the differences between patent agents' and student attorneys' demographics:

	Patent Agent	Student Attorney
Average age	46	46
Gender ratio	Male, 69.5% Female, 30.5%	Male, 44.7% Female, 55.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.6% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 6.4% White, 75.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 5.6% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 6.4% White, 75.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	10%	10%

Differences between patent agent and student attorney duties and responsibilities

Patent agent example responsibilities.

Advise client in requirements to achieve and maintain critical FCPA compliance.
Represent local and multi-national clients before the USPTO and US/RO of WIPO.
Conduct detailed interactions with the USPTO regarding patent prosecution.
Formulate objections under 35 USC regulations.
Assist with patent appeals, interferences, and opposition proceedings.
Prepare non- final rejection under 35 USC 102/103 base on reference from the prior art.

Student attorney example responsibilities.

Generate an internal memorandum exploring VAWA and special immigrant juvenile cases that lead to the establishment of a new clinic program.
Provide direct representation to low-income clients on a range of matters including family, criminal, probate, and post-conviction review.
Issue subpoenas for opposing party's financial records, records for businesses own by opposing party and records of government organizations.
Compose subpoenas and collect discovery.
Represent clients before administrative and probate judges.
Handle trial and arbitration preparation and document review.

Patent agent vs student attorney skills

Common patent agent skills

Intellectual Property, 13%
Patent Prosecution, 10%
Law Firm, 9%
Electrical Engineering, 9%
Litigation, 8%
Patent Portfolio, 5%

Common student attorney skills

Legal Issues, 8%
Legal Memoranda, 4%
Social Security, 4%
District Court, 4%
Domestic Violence, 4%
Probate, 3%

Patent Agent vs. similar jobs

Patent Agent related careers

Patent Agent related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Legal Industry
Patent Agent
Patent Agent vs Student Attorney

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse legal jobs