Report of the Professional Education Committee
The PEC committee deals with two main subjects: the EQE and more general professional training. Most of the work is carried out by the various sub-committees and working groups (WG).
EQE work
Now that the IPREE/REE for the new EQE are approved, the working group is now considering general issues such as specifying the level of STEM requirement, D&I issues, and appeal issues. A survey on the technical requirement for entry into the profession was recently discussed at epi Council.
Our support for candidates sitting the EQE is primarily provided by the ‘students and EQE candidates’ subcommittee working closely with the epi tutors’ and coaches’ subcommittee. A joint epi tutors-epi students meeting is also planned in September. Meanwhile, we continue to offer the usual training in the form of Tutorial and EQE Online Workshops. Students can also register for the epi Tutor Consultation Hour, an additional resource for answering students’ questions. With the new EQE starting in 2025, a summary has been published on the epi website at https://patentepi.org/en/epi-students/qualifying-as-a-european-patent-attorney and podcasts have been published on the epi-learning website at www.epi-learning.org. New specific trainings and sample papers are being prepared so watch out for more information on the epi-learning website.
Professional training:
The program of UP/UPC training is continuing and it is likely that training will shift towards UPC rather than UP training in 2024, where emphasis will be put on pre-litigation actions, such as protective letters and cease-and-desist letters. Watch out for a podcast on the first year of the system.
There is a relatively new sub-committee which is considering what training can be offered to support professional representative’s staff, particularly in view of EPAC. The second EPAC was held on 12 October 2023 and the third EPAC is scheduled for 10 October 2024. The subcommittee is discussing the best way to supplement the current training courses using the epi-learning website.
There is also a sub-committee gathering information on the CPE reporting systems from EPC member states. The discussions are still at a very preliminary stage of considering whether a system for logging continued professional education is appropriate and how it could be implemented.
The CPE sub-committee continues to organize CPE for all epi members. The 2024 workplan comprises a mix of on-site and online training events and covers both new topics as well as a continuation of seminar series which are well established. A new tool is now implemented on the epi website to allow all of our members to make suggestions for further training events. Details of all the trainings which will be offered in 2024 can be found here: https://patentepi.org/en/education-and-training/trainings-2024.
A recent development is the new series of podcasts “Insight epi” which are being published every two weeks and will cover a variety of topics. The opening podcasts cover NGT plants and the new EQE. Access them here: Course: Insight epi - The podcast for patent professionals | epi-learning
