Hi there,

Sad to say, 3 years will (to clear all papers) appear to be a tad too optimistic - I'd say the average is about 5 years or so.

Aside looking at the past rates published, you may want to have a look at a sample exam paper (try looking at papers from 2010 onwards. They should be more indicative of the examination standards these days). Granted, it may be too early for you to look at the exam papers, but it should give you an idea of what kind of "readings" you are expected to do (as at least one person has already pointed out, you do need to read and write a lot!).

In any case, the exam papers can be considered "entry level" already since in "real life," the practice is quite different. For example, for paper "A" you have the inventor feeding you with information - you just need to draft the claims to the invention. In real practice, the inventor will probably give you a "two liner" or a picture and expect you to draft a 10~20 page (or more) specification.

Just sharing this information so that you can manage your expectations a little (as least you won't be caught mentally unprepared when you do join this profession).

As for the salary, don't expect too much until you become qualified - go for a few interviews (you'd need to anyway for the internship, if you plan to join this profession) and you'd probably get a better picture.

Everything said, there'd always be aberrations (no. of years to pass, salary etc.). You'd need the determination to follow through and be mentally prepared for the long haul.

All the best dude!