Which USPTO Technology Center examines nuclear patents?

Technology Center 3600. Its Group 3640 lists nuclear systems in its scope.

Does a health physics degree qualify for the patent bar?

Not under Category A, because it is not a listed subject. A transcript with enough physics coursework may qualify under Category B, for example Option 1 (24 semester hours of physics).

Patent bar eligibility by degree

Nuclear Engineering and the Patent Bar

Q: Can nuclear technology be patented?

Yes, with one statutory exclusion: 42 U.S.C. 2181(a) bars patents on inventions useful solely in the use of special nuclear material or atomic energy in an atomic weapon. Applications can also be placed under secrecy orders.

Nuclear Engineering is a Category A subject in the USPTO General Requirements Bulletin. A bachelor's, master's or Ph.D. in nuclear engineering qualifies you to apply for the patent bar on your transcript.

Check your eligibility Full eligibility guide

At a glance

USPTO category: Category A
Listed subject: Nuclear Engineering
Degree levels: Bachelor's, master's or Ph.D.
Main Technology Centers: TC 3600

Checked against the August 2026 bulletin

Eligibility

Does a Nuclear Engineering degree qualify?

Yes. The USPTO General Requirements Bulletin (August 2026 edition) lists Nuclear Engineering in Category A, the degree-based route to the registration exam. An applicant with a bachelor's, master's or Doctor of Philosophy degree in a listed subject from an accredited U.S. college or university, or the foreign equivalent, meets the scientific and technical requirement without a course-by-course review.

Related degrees such as health physics or radiological science are not on the Category A list. A physics-heavy transcript may fit Category B Option 1 (24 semester hours of physics courses for physics majors).

Your OED application

Exactly what to submit

An official transcript from the college or university that shows the degree was awarded. A transcript issued to you is accepted if it carries the school's stamp or seal.
Not a diploma or a letter. A diploma, a copy of a transcript or a registrar's letter naming your degree does not meet the requirement.
Course descriptions if the title isn't an exact match. If your degree title differs from the listed subject, OED checks equivalence; the OED FAQ suggests sending course descriptions with the first application to avoid delay.
Foreign degrees: objective evidence of U.S. equivalence, such as an evaluation from a foreign-credential evaluation service, alongside the transcript.

The rest of the application (forms, fees and the moral-character questions) is covered step by step in the OED application guide.

Practice

Patent work for nuclear engineering graduates

Registered practitioners usually draft and prosecute applications in the technology they trained in. In this field that means work such as:

Technology area	Example inventions
Reactor design	Small modular reactors, molten-salt reactor loops, passive cooling.
Fuel and cladding	Accident-tolerant fuel cladding, fuel pellet geometry.
Radiation detection and shielding	Detector arrangements, shielding assemblies.
Isotopes and medical applications	Isotope production targets, radiation therapy systems.
Fusion	Confinement devices, plasma-facing components.

USPTO

Which Technology Centers examine this work

The USPTO routes each application to one of its Technology Centers by its classification. For nuclear engineering subject matter, these are the ones you will deal with most:

Technology Center	Why it applies
TC 3600 Transportation, Construction, Electronic Commerce, Agriculture, National Security and License and Review	Its Group 3640 covers nuclear systems.

Routing follows each application's classification, so a single application can land outside these centers.

Patent law

The Atomic Energy Act and secrecy orders

Under 42 U.S.C. 2181(a), no patent may be granted for an invention useful solely in the use of special nuclear material or atomic energy in an atomic weapon. Nuclear applications are also reviewed for secrecy orders under 35 U.S.C. 181. Both are covered in MPEP chapter 100.

The registration exam itself tests patent law and USPTO procedure from the MPEP, not your technical field. See the patent bar exam overview for format and scoring.

Pay data

What the occupation pays

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a median annual wage of $133,970 for nuclear engineers as of May 2025 (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook).

That figure is for the engineering or science occupation itself, not for patent agents or attorneys.

Other routes

If your degree title differs

Category A is matched on the subject your transcript names. Titles close to nuclear engineering are handled like this:

Nuclear Engineering and Radiological Sciences: Not printed in the bulletin. OED decides equivalence to Nuclear Engineering; include course descriptions.
Health Physics or Radiation Science: Not on the Category A list. Category B review would apply.
Nuclear Engineering Technology: Not listed. Category B or Category C (the FE exam) would apply.

If you don't qualify under Category A, Category B counts science and engineering coursework (courses for science or engineering majors, grade C- or better):

Option 1: 24 semester hours in physics (physics courses for physics majors).
Option 2: 32 semester hours: 8 in chemistry or physics plus 24 in biology, botany, microbiology or molecular biology.
Option 3: 30 semester hours in chemistry (chemistry courses for chemistry majors).
Option 4: 40 semester hours: 8 in chemistry or physics plus 32 in other listed science and engineering subjects.

Category C is for applicants with a bachelor's degree who pass the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam. Run your transcript through Do I Qualify? for a quick check, then read the full eligibility guide.

FAQ