Patent Examiner Trainer / Instructor

Location: Alexandria, VA (USPTO Headquarters)
Work Modality: Hybrid On-site
Security Clearance: Ability to obtain a Public Trust Clearance

About Team Carney

Carney delivers high-reliability educational services, professional training, and academic administration for elite federal agencies and military training academies. We specialize in instructional systems design (ISD), curriculum modernization, and interactive eLearning development to ensure federal workforces gain mission-critical operational capabilities.

Position Overview

Carney is seeking highly technical, experienced Patent Examiner Trainers / Instructors to deliver comprehensive, professional training for newly hired patent examiners within the USPTO Patent Training Academy (PTA). This role focuses on preparing approximately 900+ new examiners annually across 8 cohorts (with up to 150 students per cohort and multiple concurrent training sessions). The instructor will deliver university-style instruction, including large lectures and small-group lab sessions, using a mix of in-person, virtual (via MS Teams), and hands-on practice tools. They will ensure examiners acquire the legal, procedural, and technical competencies necessary to successfully examine patent applications in their respective Technology Centers.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities

• Deliver professional, highly engaging instruction on complex patent examination processes, legal procedures, and Manual of Patent Examining Procedure (MPEP) standards.

• Conduct training across multiple modalities, including in-person classroom instruction, lecture hall presentations, and interactive virtual sessions utilizing agency collaboration tools (e.g., MS Teams).

• Facilitate small-group laboratory sessions and practical exercises using simulated training applications to help new examiners apply classroom concepts.

• Teach hands-on search techniques using USPTO in-house and foreign patent search tools to enable examiners to conduct prior art searches and draft official correspondence.

• Maintain rigorous, consistent training coverage to prevent canceled or rescheduled classes, adhering to demanding academy schedules (including alternating 8-hour and 9-hour training days over a 10-week curriculum).

• Incorporate advanced adult learning theories and modern engagement strategies to maximize learner motivation, participation, and knowledge retention.

• Provide structured feedback, assessment evaluations, and recommendations to the PTA curriculum modernization team to help refine course materials.

• Collaborate closely with Government Subject Matter Experts (SMEs), patent examiners, and attorneys to ensure all delivered instructional material remains legally and procedurally accurate.
  
  

Required Minimum Qualifications

• Instructional Experience: Minimum of three (3) to five (5) years of experience delivering highly technical, legal, regulatory, or intellectual property (IP) training to adult learners.

• Subject Matter Expertise: Proven proficiency and technical knowledge in patent-examination, patent-prosecution, or MPEP procedures.

• Platform & Delivery Skills: Demonstrated experience conducting high-volume, professional training both in-person and virtually (via MS Teams) for cohort-based structures.

• Volume Capacity: Experience delivering instruction to large student volumes (supporting programs with up to 100–150 students per cohort and concurrent training tracks).
  

Preferred Qualifications

• Direct prior experience as a USPTO Patent Examiner, Supervisory Patent Examiner (SPE), or Patent Attorney.

• Specialized experience teaching in-house USPTO search tools and case management applications.

• Demonstrated experience collaborating with instructional designers on transitioning traditional, instructor-led materials into modern, gamified, or eLearning formats.

• Advanced degree in Engineering, Computer Science, physical sciences, or a Juris Doctor (JD) with an intellectual property focus.