Using the MPEP during the exam

Answer in brief

The MPEP is on screen during the exam, but it is a tool for confirming close calls, not for learning rules mid-exam. Search for the distinctive term in the question and go straight to the governing section.

Lookup tactics

Search the exact statutory or rule term ("terminal disclaimer", "1.97").
Know which chapter a topic lives in before you search.
Stop once you have the rule; do not read surrounding sections.

Practice

Rehearse in an exam-style viewer such as Wysebridge's MPEP simulator. For plain-English explanations of key sections, see MPEP.net.

Sources for this entry

Manual of Patent Examining Procedure (MPEP) USPTO
The examination manual the patent bar is tested on; open book during the exam.
Wysebridge — Prometric MPEP simulator Wysebridge (publisher of this site)
A replica of the exam-day MPEP viewer for practicing lookups.

Practical guidance is original editorial content. Company-published figures are the company's own claims and are labeled as such.

Continue this reading path

Patent bar test-day strategy

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How to Pass the Patent Bar. “Using the MPEP during the exam.” Wysebridge Reference. Content reviewed 9 November 2026.
https://howtopassthepatentbar.com/mpep-lookup-on-the-exam/