Incoming first-year Santa Clara Law student Alexandra Koseva. Photo by Alina Kharina
SANTA CLARA, Calif., Aug. 14, 2017— At a legal panel next month, experts will compare how software patents are handled in the United States and in Europe. One of the speakers will be Alexandra Koseva, a young woman who is a European patent attorney and a U.S. patent agent, with plenty of experience in the complexities of patent law and prosecution on both continents.
Not too extraordinary perhaps, unless you consider that Koseva is also a first-year law student at Santa Clara University this year.
“I’m reverse engineering my legal career,” jokes Koseva, who will get her J.D. in 2020. She chose Santa Clara Law because of the strength of its intellectual property (IP) program, the robust programming of the High Tech Law Institute, and the strong, diverse classmates who will be in class with her.
“Now that I am at Santa Clara Law in Silicon Valley, the whole world is open to me,” says Koseva, who will be an IP Fellow. “I’m really happy to contribute to the IP community.”
Koseva received her undergraduate degree in computer science from Sofia University in 2008 and a master’s degree in IT law from Stockholm University a year later. She’s been working as a patent clerk for Schwegman Lundberg & Woessner in San Jose since May, after a two-year program at the European Patent Office and five years as a patent engineer with SAP Labs in Bulgaria. Now she wants to be able to practice IP law in the U.S.
Koseva, who is originally from Bulgaria, is one of the 179 full-time and 42 part-time students who are beginning their first year of law school at Santa Clara University School of Law, Aug. 14. The class is 60 percent female, and 60 percent of the class identifies as an ethnic minority.
“We are so pleased to welcome this talented, diverse, and accomplished class of first-year students to Santa Clara Law,” said Dean Lisa Kloppenberg. “Along with our returning students, this class will be the first to benefit from our brand-new Howard S. and Alida S. Charney Hall of Law, which opens in January, and was built to maximize our location in Silicon Valley and the tremendous interdisciplinary resources of the Santa Clara campus.”
This newest class of students come from 17 states and five foreign countries including China, India, Italy, Canada, and Pakistan. Thirteen students are permanent U.S. residents, from countries including Australia, Egypt, Hong Kong, Korea, and Mexico.
Twenty-two of the incoming students already have advanced degrees, seven M.A.s; seven M.S.s; six Ph.D.s; two LL.M.s; and three MBAs. More than 1,900 people applied for spots in this year’s class, which has a median age of 23 (full time) and 27 (part time).
In addition to the students seeking their J.D. degrees, another 11 new students will pursue an advanced LL.M. degree.
About Santa Clara University School of Law
Santa Clara University School of Law, one of the nation’s most diverse law schools, is dedicated to educating lawyers who lead with a commitment to excellence, ethics, and social justice. Santa Clara Law offers students an academically rigorous program including certificates in high tech law, international law, public interest and social justice law, and privacy law, as well as numerous graduate and joint degree options. Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, Santa Clara Law is nationally distinguished for its faculty engagement, preparation for practice, and top-ranked programs in intellectual property. For more information, see lawscuedustage.wpengine.com.
