BU first university to receive direct accreditation from the Intellectual Property Regulation Board

Bournemouth University has become the first university to receive direct accreditation from the Intellectual Property Regulation Board (IPReg), the new statutory body regulating the professions of patent attorney and trade mark attorney.*

Under the previous regime, there were four universities accredited to provide exemptions from the foundation exams required by the Joint Education Board (JEB) of the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA) and the Institute of Trade Mark Attorneys (ITMA): Queen Mary, Manchester, Brunel and Bournemouth. Bournemouth University now continues to be able to offer these exemptions to students who take the Postgraduate Certificate or LLM in Intellectual Property.*

The report of the accreditation assessor for IPReg included a survey of earlier students of BU PG Cert/LLM in Intellectual Property. Students were said to be "extremely positive" about their experiences on the course:

"All felt that the academic standard of the course was high, appropriately so, and that they received a thorough grounding in the broad range of IP topics covered."

"The teaching itself was considered to be of a uniformly high standard, both from the academics and practitioners, all of whom were seen as approachable and professional."

"All were very enthusiastic about use of e-activities as a teaching method and found the required group participation in on-line e-activities worthwhile."

The teaching environment at the Executive Business Centre, close to the railway station, "was praised as being more like an office rather than an academic institution".

The assessor concluded:

"The overall tone of the student feedback on the PG Cert IP course was very positive and did not suggest any serious concerns about the current structure, content, teaching standards, delivery or assessment methods followed by BU. The course is seen as challenging but enjoyable and worthwhile, and valued as a first step to professional qualification in many cases."

"In content terms it is apparent from the Unit Guides that the BU PG Cert IP course does deliver the broad theoretical overview of the law concerning the IP topics which it covers. It also appears that this is of an extent and level which exceeds that previously required by the JEB [CIPA/ITMA] Foundation Level examinations."

*Note on Intellectual Property Regulation Board (IPReg):

IPReg ,as a statutory regulator, must be mindful of the regulatory objectives in the Legal Services Act, 2007 ("LSA"). These require them (inter alia) to "encourage an independent, strong, diverse and effective legal profession" and to support initiatives which improve access to and diversity within that profession.

In addition, there is a duty in the LSA for all regulators to promote and maintain adherence by practitioners to defined professional principles, which include maintaining proper standards of work. Ensuring that new entrants to the UK IP profession receive adequate training in their subject and are then properly examined by a reputable and efficient Examination Agency at the beginning of their careers is a key consideration if this latter requirement is to be observed. This approach also reflects the public interest in dealing with properly qualified and regulated advisors.

*IPReg assessor's description of the Postgraduate Certificate in Intellectual Property:

"The current blended teaching format has been in place since 2008 and is aimed at students who do not wish to study full-time (often because they are already in employment) and/or incur the expense of attending a London-based course. Thus, there are 3 long weekends based at the centre in Bournemouth, held at approx. 8 week intervals, where students attend in person for lectures and face-to-face tuition, supplemented by a requirement for considerable private study. Progress is monitored via on-line submission of 3 written assignments (summatively assessed by the tutors), as well as participation in 27 shorter e-activities, which are formatively assessed by the teaching staff. These latter are specifically designed to allow tutors to monitor students' progress; teaching at subsequent block weekend may be varied to address areas of weakness following this review process.

There is one 2-hour written exam, covering International Patent and Trade Mark Practice, at the end of the course, which runs in total over 5 months from January-June. There is an opportunity to re-sit the written exam in the following September. Exam candidates are permitted access to marked-up copies of set texts during the written exam.

The course itself is divided into 3 modular units, each worth 20 credits. These are titled Patents and Designs, Copyright and Trade Marks, and International Patent and Trade Mark Practice. In addition, students are expected to cover a non-credit unit titled Principles of Law, which nevertheless requires participation in 9 e-activities.

In total, students experience a minimum of 60 hours direct teaching contact over the 3 block weekends; in addition, BU estimates that students will average 12 hours private study per week over the 5 month duration of the course, making a total of 300 study hours. This estimate of time spent on private study was corroborated by the students who took part in the feedback exercise."