glad that there is some interest in these threads. I am a current trainee, finished my GCIP and still getting to know the daily work. I have to say, the job market is not that good because there are not many positions open. you see, for training, you need to be under a registered and qualified patent attorney. there are not that many to begin with. hope top scientists and engineers can consider this path but have to reduce pay at entry for few years. the Government has been pushing for innovation and with it, should come IP I think. As there are so few positions at companies, they probably filter the degrees. Some go for PHDs. From what I see, PHDs can have a hard time changing their mindsets in this job. Like some posters said, to do well, you need to like reading and writing a lot. And as a trainee, to take a lot of c**p also.

For number of places, like you say, there are only a few boutique IP firms locally. These are not legal firms, just pte ltd. The market has opened up alot because now there are law firms with patent departments with registered patent attorneys. from what I hear, you can get to be paid slightly better in law firms if you have proven your worth, or get registered. their IP departments are buffered by bigger departments like litigation. maybe best to get trained and cut your teeth in a boutique IP firm, then try to engineer a move to elsewhere. From what I observe in my company, only a handful get to shine or be recognised. Many others just work under the radar. I think it depends on what you want. For myself, it should be interesting to change firm once I get registered and not get too comfortable.