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Are you also looking for a job that is flexible, pays very well, looks fantastic on your CV and is inline with your study ? Xtend has some great jobs at the European Patent Office (EPO) in Rijswijk.

Some keyfacts

About EPO

In short: EPO examines new patents for uniqueness. To support examiners with their research, EPO uses a comprehensive database on existing patents that uses indexing symbols for improved searching. The EPO has its head office in Munich, a branch in Rijswijk and sub-offices in Berlin and Vienna. The EPO employs approximately 6500 persons of which some 3500 are patent examiners. During the patent granting procedure a documentary search is carried out to determine whether or not a patent application is new and inventive. This is done by the examiners who have to retrieve relevant documents from the existing patent and non-patent literature. To allow an efficient way of searching the patent documents and non-patent literature, the examiners add value to the document collection by adding systematic classification and indexing information to the documents. The classification and indexing symbols are derived from an internal classification system called ECLA (European Classification System), which comprises more than 200000 symbols. These classification symbols are linked to the document numbers and are introduced into the EPO databases.

About the job as assistant examiner

In short: New technical developments in a certain expertise demands the reorganisation and reclassification of existing patents. Assistant examiners work on such classification projects within a technological niche. In order to keep the classified document collection complete and up to date, the EPO examiners systematically revise the classification scheme and reclassify the documents on a regular basis in order to adapt to new technical developments. In the framework of the Examiner Assistance Programme, temporary staff carries out the reclassification of the documents in special reorganization projects, under supervision of the examiners in charge of the technical fields and according to the classification schemes set-up by the examiners. The EPO examiner, to whom the temporary staff is assigned, will give the necessary information and training on the job.

The work consists of:

1. Analyzing patent documents and technical non-patent literature documents with respect to the technical details.
2. Identifying the most relevant features and categorizing them into the revised classification scheme.

What we are looking for

In short: Smart and neat technical students/graduates that speak English adequately and have passive knowledge of German and/or French. Very capable in the required technical niche. Available for at least 16 hours per week for a minimum of three months. You need to have at least finished your first year of technical studies at a technical university (propedeuse). Each examining job requires a certain level of technical knowledge in a specific technical field (see vacancies). The necessary technical knowledge will be assessed in an interview at the EPO. In most of the technical fields the documents to be analysed are in English, therefore a good knowledge of the English language is required. Depending on the technical field, an important part of the documentation is in French or German. Passive knowledge of one or sometimes both of these languages is sufficient. Furthermore you have to be available for at least 16 hours per week, but the more the better (up to a maximum of 40 hours per week). Since you will have to become comfortable with examining patents, we expect you to work at least 3 months. Due to EPO rules the maximum possible employment period is 26 working weeks (weeks in which you've worked).

My experience in the EPO was fantastic, especially the people I met there. I developed my capacity for analysis and synthesis of technical documentation, as well as a familiarity with language and processes related to the intellectual property protection.

Wages

Your hourly wage depends on your advancement in your study:

• In the possession of a Propedeuse: 11,00 euro per hour*
• In the possession of a Bsc or Msc degree: 12,50 euro per hour*
* This hourly wage includes vacation allowance and days
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