Online Paralegal & Legal Services Degrees and Careers
While lawyers function as the most well-known face of the legal field, most attorneys couldn't carry out their jobs without the help of a network of assistants and administrative staff members. Chief among these are paralegals and legal services employees, who carry out many different legal, administrative, logistical and research tasks.
Although the responsibilities that can be assigned to paralegals differ from state to state, many professionals in these roles carry out many of the same tasks that a lawyer performs, with the exception of offering legal advice and making court appearances.
Education & Career Opportunities in Paralegal & Legal Services
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the paralegal and legal assistant jobs are expected to grow at a faster-than-average pace (up to 28 percent) between 2008 and 2018. However, competition, however, should remain significant, and the most lucrative and stable positions should be reserved for candidates with a degree or other formal training.
In the legal services field, paralegal and legal services degrees can impact earning power. Experienced and educated paralegals at high-end law firms can earn annual salaries in the high five figures, while those just starting out at a government agency may make less than $30,000 a year. In 2009, paralegals earned a median annual wage of $46,980, while the top ten percent earned $75,700.
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Building on Purdue's mission to provide greater access to affordable, world-class education, Purdue University Globaldelivers a fully personalized online experience that's tailored to working adults. By opening the doors to adults who need flexibility to fit learning into their busy lives, we make it possible to achieve a high-quality education from a prestigious university system—completely online.
- Online Courses
- Ranked among the Best Online Bachelor’s Programs by U.S. News and World Report in 2015.
- Founded in 1890, it has a campus in Waterbury, CT and offers online degree program in eight-week modules, six times a year.
- About 800 students are enrolled at the main campus, and about half of them commute.
- Online courses help make it possible for students to earn a bachelor’s degree in as little as 24 months and a master’s degree in 12-18 months.
- Accredited
- Online Courses
- Flexible Scheduling
- Accelerated Programs
- Financial Aid
- Transferable Credits
- Based on their 2014 graduate survey, 85.7% of graduates were employed in their chosen field or continuing their education within one year of graduation.
- Offers academic assistance services for students, including tutors, personal advisors and SMARTHINKING, their 24/7 online learning assistance center.
- 84% of surveyed graduates said they would recommend Central Penn College to a friend.
- On-campus housing is provided through apartments and townhouses, not dorms.
- Accredited by the Middle States Commission on HIgher Education (MSCHE).
- Accredited
- Online Courses
- Flexible Scheduling
- Financial Aid
- Transferable Credits
- Liberty University provides a worldclass education from a christ-centered worldview
- 100% online programs at associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral levels
- No standardized testing if student meets admission requirements
- Accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges
- 95% of Liberty University students receive some form of financial aid
- Accredited
- Online Courses
- Financial Aid
- Transferable Credits
- Northcentral University was founded in 1996 to provide working professionals around the world with unprecedented access to richly engaging, professionally relevant, and academically-rigorous education from a U.S. university.
- As a regionally accredited, private, online and graduate-focused university, NCU offers doctoral, master’s and bachelor’s degrees in business, technology management, education, and psychology, as well as doctoral and master’s degrees in marriage and family therapy.
- Accredited
- Online Courses
- Financial Aid
- Transferable Credits
- Ranked among the Best National Universities in 2018 by U.S. News & World Report.
- Designated as a 2018 Military Friendly School by GI Jobs and Victory Media.
- 13:1 student-faculty ratio, with an average class size of 21.
- Accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE).
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