Thank you to the dozens of licensees who have contributed so far to the competency initiative and the redevelopment of the qualifying examinations. The subject matter expertise brought to this process by IP professionals ensure that the new competency profiles and exams represent and accurately measure the real-world skills used by agents to support their clients.
Now that the foundations have been laid, CPATA will be assembling additional groups of licensees to fulfil roles to support the new exams. All participants will receive an honorarium in recognition of their assistance.
To ensure diversity in representation in these working groups, we are particularly interested in hearing from in-house, solo practitioner and/or bilingual agents outside of Quebec and Ontario. However, we encourage everyone who is interested to make a submission.
Opportunities
| Group | Tasks | Required | Commitment |
| Skills Exam Advisory Groups | – approving a development guide and sample exam (Jan 2024) – develop the 2024 exam content (Feb-July 2024) – mark the 2024 exam submissions (Sept-Dec 2024) | 5 Class 1 or 2 patent agents, at least two bilingual
2 bilingual Class 1 or 2 trademark agents | One year starting in January 2024 |
| Standard-Setting Groups for the 2024 Knowledge Examinations | – attending a training session – test-writing the exams – participating in two standard-setting sessions | 10 class 1 or 2 patent agents
10 class 1 or 2 trademark agents | 24 hours over the course of 4 days on the following dates:
Trademark Knowledge Examination March 6-7 and March 11-12, 2024
Patent Knowledge Examination April 2 – 5, 2024 |
| Item Development Groups for the 2025 Knowledge Examinations | – attending an item development training session (April 2024) – developing 12 multiple-choice questions using a pre-approved development guide (April-May 2024) – conducting a peer review of another set of 12 items (May-June 2024) | 15 Class 1 or 2 patent agents
15 Class 1 or 2 trademark agents
| 12-16 hours between April and June 2024 |
If you have any questions or would like to discuss the competency initiative or the item development work, please do not hesitate to contact Jen Slabodkin, the Director of Registration & Education, Deputy Registrar at registration-inscription@cpata-cabamc.ca.
