{"id":941,"date":"2014-09-04T13:00:24","date_gmt":"2014-09-04T13:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/?p=941"},"modified":"2014-09-03T19:14:36","modified_gmt":"2014-09-03T19:14:36","slug":"hello-from-megan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/2014\/09\/04\/hello-from-megan\/","title":{"rendered":"Hello from Megan"},"content":{"rendered":"

A post from our student blogger Megan Usovsky<\/em><\/p>\n

I can remember the exact moment when I discovered what I wanted to do when I grew up\u2026It was a stifling afternoon in late May during a high school anatomy class.\u00a0 Without air conditioning the atmosphere was thick as syrup in the mid-afternoon Missouri humidity. \u00a0The anatomy lab was no exception: \u00a0it began to reek of preservation fluid in early spring just as students began to dissect fetal pigs.\u00a0 Most students, and even some faculty, regarded the second floor science wing as an abysmal pit that needed to be avoided altogether starting in March.\u00a0 The strong scent of this occurrence never bothered me, though, and in fact, I felt at home in this section of the building because it was where half of my favorite classes were located.\u00a0 The other half of my favorite classes were held in the English department wing. \u00a0It may have been the heat, but during this stuffy 6th<\/sup> period anatomy class I was struck with revelation: \u00a0someday I would combine my love for science with my love for writing.<\/p>\n

I pursued both science and writing after high school and I went on to receive my B.S. in Biological Sciences at the University of Missouri.\u00a0 Following undergrad, I received my Juris Doctor from the Thomas M. Cooley Law School.\u00a0 During law school I was privileged to be selected to serve on two scholarly writing publications: \u00a0the Thomas M. Cooley Law Review and the Thomas M. Cooley Journal of Practical and Clinical Law.\u00a0 Following law school, I co-authored two legal articles on workers\u2019 compensation and negotiation.\u00a0 Currently, I have been a practicing attorney for over three years and have had the great fortune of learning some incredibly valuable legal skills.\u00a0 The ability to persuade judges and opposing counsel with words, especially in writing, can mean the difference between a client\u2019s favorable or detrimental outcome.<\/p>\n

I have reached a point in my professional career that I am truly ready to merge my scientific interests with my love of writing and my legal abilities\u2014this is what attracted me to Notre Dame\u2019s MSPL program.\u00a0 The 10 month curriculum trains matriculated candidates with science and engineering backgrounds to become patent agents or patent attorneys.\u00a0 A patent agent is a person who has met specific technical and educational criteria, has passed the USPTO Exam, and is licensed to draft and prosecute patent applications.\u00a0 A patent attorney must have the same qualifications as an agent, and additionally, is a licensed attorney who may conduct patent trials and practice in trademark cases.\u00a0 Both patent agents and attorneys work closely with persons and entities seeking protection of innovative ideas.<\/p>\n

Patent law clients are very special:\u00a0 they are inventors.\u00a0 The ability to communicate with technological innovators cannot be learned from mere passage of the patent bar, though.\u00a0 Practical experience is crucial to translating the details of an invention into a well-crafted patent application.\u00a0 The Master of Science in Patent Law program at Notre Dame will prepare me to effectively and efficiently converse with inventors to understand and then draft their ideas onto paper.\u00a0 The MSPL program at Notre Dame possesses incredible opportunities for prospective patent attorneys and agents, especially through hands on education.\u00a0 Matriculates will draft a faculty inventor\u2019s application and then submit it for patent, get the opportunity to work with leaders in technology and science, and sharpen technical skills through class work and patent research.<\/p>\n

It is an honor to join Notre Dame\u2019s esteemed Master of Science in Patent Law Program in an exciting field where science and innovation collide.\u00a0 In essence, patent law is a Big Bang of technological thought process and physical construction of an idea\u2014the point where science discovery and law crash together to create a formidable result:\u00a0 a patent protecting an invention.\u00a0 Each member of Notre Dame\u2019s MSPL program approaches the curriculum with unique education and work backgrounds, I am thrilled to share my practical legal perspective with the program and look forward to gaining a greater depth of knowledge from the other MSPL candidates, professors, and innovation professionals we will be privileged to work with.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A post from our student blogger Megan Usovsky I can remember the exact moment when I discovered what I wanted to do when I grew up\u2026It was a stifling afternoon in late May during a high school anatomy class.\u00a0 Without … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":649,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29602],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-941","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-student-blog-posts"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/941","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/649"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=941"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/941\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":942,"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/941\/revisions\/942"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=941"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=941"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.nd.edu\/patentlaw\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=941"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}