ASEAN Patent Examiner Fellowship: Patent Examiner

IPOS INTERNATIONAL PTE. LTD.; Singapore; On-site; SGD 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading intellectual property office in Singapore is seeking an ASEAN Patent Examiner for a 21-month fellowship. This role involves evaluating patent applications and conducting substantive examination to ensure compliance with patentability criteria. Candidates should have at least 5 years of experience in patent examination, with skills in legal and technical communication. The position provides opportunities for mentorship and collaboration with patent examiners from ASEAN countries.

Benefits

Professional development opportunity

Training and mentorship

Collaboration with ASEAN patent experts

Qualifications

• Minimum of 5 years of experience in patent application examination.
• Knowledge of PCT applications as an ISA is an advantage.
• Experience with the ASEAN Patent Examination Cooperation programme.

Responsibilities

• Review and analyze patent applications for compliance.
• Conduct searches using specialized databases for prior art.
• Communicate examination outcomes with applicants.

Skills

Patent law understanding

Search and examination skills

Effective communication

Curiosity and eagerness to learn

Interpersonal skills

Job description

ASEAN Patent Examiner Fellowship: Patent Examiner (Patent Search, Examination and Analytics)

Location: Singapore

Great ideas do not discriminate, and anyone can have them. Given the right protection and support, a great idea can become a powerful brand, a transformative technology, an innovative process or design, or even a song or story that moves one’s soul. Housing Singapore’s largest community of intellectual property (IP) experts, the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) understands how important it is to protect ideas and creations for now and for the future. We leverage our deep technical, legal and business expertise to help innovative enterprises grow, through their intangible assets, including IP. We catalise the ideas of today, into the assets of tomorrow.

Role

The Fellowship aims to equip patent examiners in ASEAN with expertise across technical, operational and policy domains. Through mutual exchange and hands‑on experience, Fellows will deepen their knowledge of examination practices and strengthen their ability to engage effectively with stakeholders. The Fellowship is designed to build long‑term examination capacity within ASEAN, contributing to greater alignment in the quality of the patent system across the region.

You will join our team of talented patent examiners in helping enterprises innovate and grow by granting high‑quality patents.

What the Fellowship offers

• A 21‑month professional development opportunity based in Singapore.
• Training and mentorship on patent search and examination under Singapore patent law.
• Collaboration with experienced Patent Examiners from other ASEAN member states.
• Practical experience in assessing patent applications and engaging with applicants.
• Development of leadership and stakeholder engagement skills to support long‑term capacity building.

Responsibilities

Core Responsibilities

• Review and analyse patent applications to identify technical concepts relating to an invention.
• Perform searches of the state‑of‑the‑art using specialised databases to discover relevant prior art for the invention.
• Conduct substantive examination to ensure the invention complies with patentability criteria for grant.
• Communicate with applicants or their patent agents through written opinions to present examination outcomes.
• Consider submissions filed in response to written opinions to advance the prosecution, conducting interviews with applicants or their patent agents to clarify positions where needed.

General Responsibilities

• Interpret patent law and apply guidelines in the examination of patent applications.
• Assess patent applications within area of technical expertise and areas at the periphery where applicable.
• Formulate search strategies for uncovering prior art in a cost‑efficient manner.
• Communicate technical and legal arguments in both written and verbal formats to facilitate prosecution.
• Collaborate with peers to provide technical expertise on inventions spanning multiple technological domains.
• Keep pace with emerging technological developments.

Are you the one? Please write to us if you have/are:

• Prior work experience of at least 5 years in search and substantive examination of patent applications at a patent office.
• A good understanding of patent law and its application in patent examination.
• Familiarity with handling PCT applications as an International Searching Authority (ISA) will be a plus.
• Experience in handling examination of patent applications under the ASEAN Patent Examination Cooperation (ASPEC) programme.
• Well‑versed in searching for prior art using various search platforms.
• Strong ability to communicate effectively in both written and spoken English.
• Driven to excel and meet productivity targets.
• Constantly curious, enjoy learning and applying new skills.
• Strong interpersonal skills and a team player who can be part of a network of technical experts.

In particular, we are looking for someone to join our team with:

• Familiarity with one of the following specialised fields will be a plus: Immunology or biotechnology with a focus on protein engineering; or Wireless communication and audio‑video coding standards such as 3GPP, IEEE; or Drug conjugates, medicinal chemistry, organic chemistry or polymers; or Semiconductor memory devices, mechanical or civil engineering.

The role will be based in Singapore.

To apply for this position, please email your CV to

[e-mail]