THIS EXPLAINS A LOT:

The results from the first round of employee certification testing indicate that the USPTO needs to provide significantly greater training to enable examiners to master the testing subjects.

Of the first 112 GS-12 examiners tested, 49 percent passed and 51 percent failed. The agency offered the 17 employees who were scheduled for promotion in the bi-week following the exam the option to retake the test immediately or to wait. Seven opted to wait. Of the 10 who retook the test, two passed.

All of the test questions were lifted from the patent bar exam and excluded any questions regarding attorney-client ethics and other questions pertinent exclusively to patent attorneys or agents.