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In the last few years, the job mar­ket for lawyers has been cool­ing down, with law schools turn­ing out far more lawyers than are nec­es­sary. What hasn’t cooled down, though, is the demand for para­le­gals and legal assis­tants — the pro­fes­sion­als who do the real behind-the-scenes work of a law firm, like tak­ing depo­si­tions, prepar­ing doc­u­ments, research­ing prece­dent, and more. Those peo­ple are still in high demand. That’s why many work­ing adults are choos­ing a career change with an online para­le­gal degree. At the same time, many work­ing para­le­gals who start­ed their career with an associate’s degree are choos­ing to move for­ward with a bachelor’s in legal stud­ies to earn high­er pay and more advance­ment opportunity.

For both of these prospec­tive stu­dents, a Bachelor’s in Legal Stud­ies online pro­gram is the way to go. Online pro­grams allow busy work­ing pro­fes­sion­als the chance to improve their cre­den­tials and learn new skills while con­tin­u­ing their cur­rent jobs. With advances in tech­nol­o­gy, online pro­grams can be as immer­sive, col­lab­o­ra­tive, and enrich­ing as tra­di­tion­al on-cam­pus pro­grams — stu­dents just need to know where to look for the best choices.

Methodology: Ranking the Best Online Paralegal Programs

The Bachelor’s Degree Cen­ter rank­ing of the best online para­le­gal pro­grams and legal stud­ies degrees start­ed with thor­ough research into accred­it­ed, trust­wor­thy pro­grams offer­ing ful­ly online and hybrid degree pro­grams in para­le­gal stud­ies. With our ini­tial list, BDC edi­tors ranked pro­grams accord­ing to fac­tors that are par­tic­u­lar­ly impor­tant to career-focused adults who want a return on their invest­ment: Tuition Rate, Stu­dent Sat­is­fac­tion, Salary Poten­tial, Grad­u­a­tion Rate, and Employ­ment Rate. We use data from Col­lege Score­card, IPEDS, and Niche.

1. Tulane University

At Tulane Uni­ver­si­ty, stu­dents pur­su­ing a career in legal stud­ies have an option to pur­sue Tulane’s online BA in Gen­er­al Legal Stud­ies. This online para­le­gal degree pro­gram is flex­i­ble in its online for­mat, allow­ing stu­dents the abil­i­ty to con­tin­ue their dai­ly lives and work sched­ule while earn­ing their degree. Both this pro­gram and the Para­le­gal Cer­tifi­cate that is offered by Tulane Uni­ver­si­ty are approved by the Amer­i­can Bar Asso­ci­a­tion. Because of this flex­i­bil­i­ty and rep­u­ta­tion, the BA in Gen­er­al Legal Stud­ies at Tulane Uni­ver­si­ty is one of the lead­ing Bach­e­lors in Legal Stud­ies online programs.

At Tulane Uni­ver­si­ty, accred­i­ta­tion among their pro­grams is essen­tial, as they strive to ensure that stu­dents across cam­pus are receiv­ing the high­est qual­i­ty edu­ca­tion in their dis­ci­pline. This insti­tu­tion has been the recip­i­ent of the Mil­i­tary Friend­ly School Sil­ver Award, due to their focus and com­mit­ment to active and for­mer mil­i­tary stu­dents and their families.

What We Like: Many of Tulane’s stu­dents are mil­i­tary vet­er­ans and per­sonnnel who are able to com­plete their active duty mis­sions and still earn an education.

Pro­gram: BA in Gen­er­al Legal Studies

Learn more about the online para­le­gal bachelor’s!

2. University of Central Florida

The BA or BS in Legal Stud­ies offered online at the Uni­ver­si­ty of Cen­tral Flori­da is gain­ing immense pop­u­lar­i­ty among stu­dents who are pur­su­ing a career in the legal field. This online para­le­gal degree pro­gram at the Uni­ver­si­ty of Cen­tral Flori­da is designed to give grad­u­ates of this pro­gram a sol­id foun­da­tion in the legal field. The entire fac­ul­ty mem­bers of this pro­gram are Amer­i­can Bar Asso­ci­a­tion approved, ensur­ing that the cur­ricu­lum is adequate.

At the Uni­ver­si­ty of Cen­tral Flori­da, their mis­sion is to award the best pro­grams avail­able to their stu­dents at the low­est rate pos­si­ble. Because of this mis­sion, This pro­gram, the BA or BS in Legal Stud­ies has been award­ed U.S. News Best Online Pro­gram in both the Bach­e­lor’s cat­e­go­ry and the Vet­er­ans’ cat­e­go­ry for 2019.

What We Like: Because of their finan­cial aid offer­ings and low­er tuition costs than oth­er insti­tu­tions, UCF is one of the more afford­able Bach­e­lors in Legal Stud­ies online.

Pro­gram: BA or BS in Legal Studies

Learn more about the online para­le­gal bachelor’s!

3. University of Massachusetts Lowell

At UMass Low­ell, the online BS in Crim­i­nal Jus­tice – Para­le­gal option allows stu­dents to con­ve­nient­ly gain their Para­le­gal cer­ti­fi­ca­tion while study­ing online. Stu­dents are not only intro­duced to the world of legal writ­ing, but they also gain a thor­ough foun­da­tion of the legal process and gain the skills required to be suc­cess­ful. Because of this online para­le­gal degree option for stu­dents, many are list­ing this pro­gram as one of the best online Para­le­gal pro­grams for stu­dents in the Northeast.

UMass Low­ell also offers these same cours­es on-cam­pus for stu­dents who need that class­room set­ting, mak­ing this a diverse and flex­i­ble option. This pairs in with the mis­sion at UMass Low­ell, to pro­vide each stu­dent with the tools and resources they need for success.

What We Like: UMass Lowell’s online BS in Crim­i­nal Jus­tice – Para­le­gal option has been list­ed in the top ten rank­ings for best online Bachelor’s pro­gram by U.S. News and World for 2019.

Pro­gram: BS in Crim­i­nal Jus­tice — Paralegal

4. University of Arizona

One of the more pop­u­lar online pro­grams at the Uni­ver­si­ty of Ari­zona is the online BA in Law. This pro­gram pre­pares stu­dents who are look­ing to fur­ther their career into the legal field for law school or move into a Para­le­gal set­ting. While this cur­ricu­lum seems chal­leng­ing, stu­dents who have grad­u­at­ed from this pro­gram have found them­selves pre­pared for and suc­cess­ful in grad­u­ate school. Because of the prepa­ra­tion of this pro­gram for its stu­dents, those seek­ing to advance their edu­ca­tion find this pro­gram to be one of the best Bach­e­lors in Legal Stud­ies online.

This BA in Law from the Uni­ver­si­ty of Ari­zona emerges out of the James E. Rogers Col­lege of Law. This col­lege is approved by the Coun­cil of the Sec­tion of Legal Edu­ca­tion and Admis­sions to the Bar. All fac­ul­ty mem­bers of this pro­gram are ABA-approved.

What We Like: Because UA’s pro­gram is writ­ing inten­sive, stu­dents are required to mas­ter basic writ­ing skills before mov­ing for­ward in the program.

Pro­gram: BA in Law

Learn more about the online para­le­gal bachelor’s!

5. Bellevue University

Belle­vue Uni­ver­si­ty stu­dents can pur­sue an online BS in Legal Stud­ies, in an effort to advance their career in the legal field. Designed for those who are look­ing to advance their career into law, and includes Pre-law at its foun­da­tion. Stu­dents who grad­u­ate with this online para­le­gal degree find them­selves either employed short­ly after grad­u­a­tion in their field of study or mov­ing on to grad­u­ate school to fur­ther their edu­ca­tion. Because of the advanced cur­ricu­lum, many stu­dents are pur­su­ing this degree as one of the top Bach­e­lors in Legal Stud­ies online.

Belle­vue Uni­ver­si­ty has been award­ed for its pro­grams and gained accred­i­ta­tions that sup­port the cur­ricu­lum that is taught both online and in the class­room. They are accred­it­ed by the High­er Learn­ing Commission.

What We Like: Belle­vue has also been award­ed as being one of the top ten Uni­ver­si­ties in the entire Unit­ed States for Adult Learn­ers by Wash­ing­ton Month­ly, receiv­ing the award for three con­sec­u­tive years.

Pro­gram: BS in Legal Studies

Learn more about the online para­le­gal bachelor’s!

6. Dominican University

The BPS in Legal Stud­ies from Domini­can Uni­ver­si­ty gives stu­dents the tools and skills need­ed to pur­sue their career in pro­fes­sion­al law. The for­mat of this online para­le­gal degree pro­gram is com­plete­ly online for stu­dents, allow­ing those who are geo­graph­i­cal­ly chal­lenged, work­ing full-time, or serv­ing in the mil­i­tary an option to con­tin­ue pur­su­ing their career goals and edu­ca­tion with­out ever hav­ing to pause their life. Because of this flex­i­bil­i­ty and struc­tured cur­ricu­lum, many stu­dents are find­ing this pro­gram to be lead­ing as one of the Bach­e­lors in Legal Stud­ies online.

The aca­d­e­m­ic rep­u­ta­tion found at Domini­can Uni­ver­si­ty is well-known and respect­ed across the coun­try. This insti­tu­tion is accred­it­ed region­al­ly through the High­er Learn­ing Com­mis­sion. Domini­can Uni­ver­si­ty offers stu­dents engage­ment resources and advis­ing for their stu­dents that are both on and off cam­pus, giv­ing them equal oppor­tu­ni­ties and invest­ing in their success.

What We Like: Domini­can prides itself on diver­si­ty and inclu­sion for stu­dents, staff, and fac­ul­ty for a well-round­ed learn­ing environment.

Pro­gram: Bach­e­lor of Pro­fes­sion­al Stud­ies in Legal Studies

Learn more about the online para­le­gal bachelor’s!

7. Loyola University Chicago

With Loy­ola Uni­ver­si­ty Chicago’s BA in Para­le­gal Stud­ies, those seek­ing a career as a Para­le­gal can gain their edu­ca­tion. With a cur­ricu­lum ground­ed in the foun­da­tion of law and the process­es that Para­le­gals work with dai­ly, these stu­dents are well equipped when grad­u­at­ing from the pro­gram. For those who have already earned an asso­ci­ate’s, they find this pro­gram to put them on the fast track to advance their career. Most grad­u­ates in this pro­gram find employ­ment as a Para­le­gal or in the law pro­fes­sion fol­low­ing grad­u­a­tion, mak­ing this one of the best online Para­le­gal programs.

Gain­ing ABA cer­ti­fi­ca­tion for legal stud­ies pro­grams is not some­thing that is eas­i­ly done, but at Loy­ola Uni­ver­si­ty Chica­go, they have achieved this goal and accred­i­ta­tion. The BA in Para­le­gal Stud­ies has been an approved and accred­it­ed pro­gram for over twen­ty years, mak­ing it one of the old­est and most respect­ed pro­grams today in the law profession.

What We Like: Chica­go pro­vides one of the best job mar­kets for para­le­gals, mak­ing Loy­ola Chicago’s pro­gram a great entry into a sat­is­fy­ing career.

Pro­gram: BA in Para­le­gal Studies

Learn more about the online para­le­gal bachelor’s!

8. Florida Gulf Coast University

The BS in Legal Stud­ies at Flori­da Gulf Coast Uni­ver­si­ty is a pro­gram that includes insight and foun­da­tion into var­i­ous sects of laws. With this cur­ricu­lum, stu­dents are intro­duced to fam­i­ly law, real estate law, crim­i­nal law, and oth­er sects that are found with­in the law pro­fes­sion. Because of the stu­dent involve­ment of the pro­gram and the well-round­ed cur­ricu­lum, this is one of the most sought-after Bach­e­lors in Legal Stud­ies online programs.

At Flori­da Gulf Coast Uni­ver­si­ty, stu­dents can expect to receive an edu­ca­tion that will assist them in all of their pro­fes­sion­al stud­ies, whether they pur­sue a career in the field or law or not. This insti­tu­tion is region­al­ly accred­it­ed by the South­ern Asso­ci­a­tion of Col­leges and Schools Com­mis­sion on Col­leges (SACSCOC).

What We Like: FGCU’s pro­gram also encour­ages intern­ships for stu­dents so that they obtain first­hand expe­ri­ence in their field, and begin pur­su­ing career opportunities.

Pro­gram: BS in Legal Studies

9. Herzing University

The online BS in Legal Stud­ies at Herz­ing Uni­ver­si­ty awards stu­dents the abil­i­ty to pur­sue a career as a Para­le­gal. This cur­ricu­lum is equipped with build­ing skills such as legal writ­ing and research, but also inves­ti­gat­ing and com­mu­ni­ca­tion that are a part of a Paralegal’s job. Stu­dents who have grad­u­at­ed with this pro­gram have moved into Para­le­gal careers and found a pos­i­tive return on their invest­ment by gain­ing employ­ment with a sub­stan­tial salary. Because of this pos­i­tive ROI, this is one of the best online Para­le­gal pro­grams for stu­dents across the nation.

Herz­ing Uni­ver­si­ty is an insti­tu­tion that is focused on careers for their stu­dents and striv­ing to give them all of the tools nec­es­sary to move for­ward with their dreams. With a vast amount of pro­grams, Herz­ing Uni­ver­si­ty is accred­it­ed by the High­er Learn­ing Commission.

What We Like: Grad­u­ates of Herzing’s legal stud­ies pro­gram are eli­gi­ble to take the Para­le­gal exam through the Asso­ci­a­tion of Legal Assistants.

Pro­gram: BS in Legal Studies

Learn more about the online para­le­gal bachelor’s!

10. Mississippi College

The online BS in Para­le­gal Stud­ies at Mis­sis­sip­pi Col­lege is designed to give stu­dents seek­ing a career as a legal assis­tant an afford­able and flex­i­ble option to obtain their edu­ca­tion. Because this pro­gram is one of the more afford­able options online for stu­dents liv­ing in Mis­sis­sip­pi and oth­er South­east­ern states, it is quick­ly grow­ing as one of the best online Para­le­gal programs.

Mis­sis­sip­pi Col­lege has received a num­ber of awards over the last two decades. Some of the most recent awards include num­ber one in “Best Online Chris­t­ian Col­lege” by Best Schools and num­ber sev­en in “Afford­able Online Master’s Degree” by Great Val­ue Col­leges. Stu­dents pur­su­ing a degree with this insti­tu­tion will be pro­vid­ed qual­i­ty edu­ca­tion at an afford­able rate.

What We Like: Legal research and writ­ing are a part of Mis­sis­sip­pi College’s cur­ricu­lum, as well as civ­il lit­i­ga­tion and an intro­duc­tion to devel­op­ing the skills nec­es­sary in the legal profession.

Pro­gram: BS in Para­le­gal Studies

11. Stevenson University

At Steven­son Uni­ver­si­ty, stu­dents pur­su­ing a BS in Legal Stud­ies seek to gain the knowl­edge and skills nec­es­sary to move for­ward in the law pro­fes­sion, whether they decide to work as legal assis­tants or move into pre-law and gain a career as a lawyer. The fac­ul­ty for this pro­gram is ABA-approved, and pro­vides first­hand expe­ri­ence of work­ing in the legal field. The cur­ricu­lum includes all of the essen­tial skills need­ed for those who desire to be a suc­cess­ful legal assis­tant and is one of the best Bach­e­lors in Legal Stud­ies online.

Steven­son Uni­ver­si­ty began its life as a women’s school teach­ing sec­re­tar­i­al skills, and remains ded­i­cat­ed to pro­vid­ing pro­fes­sion­al oppor­tu­ni­ties for women (who make up more than two-thirds of the stu­dent body). Stu­dents have a low stu­dent-teacher ratio and can expect to have in-depth inter­ac­tion in their class­rooms despite their online format.

What We Like: Steven­son Uni­ver­si­ty is home to the only four-year pro­gram BS in Legal Stud­ies, that is approved by the Amer­i­can Bar Asso­ci­a­tion in the state of Maryland,

Pro­gram: BS in Legal Studies

Learn more about the online para­le­gal bachelor’s!

12. Purdue University Global

The BS in Legal Sup­port and Ser­vices at Pur­due Uni­ver­si­ty Glob­al is one of the more afford­able options for online pro­grams and stu­dents seek­ing a career in legal stud­ies. This pro­gram is eli­gi­ble for a tuition cap, where stu­dents are able to pay a fixed tuition rate for their edu­ca­tion for the life of their pro­gram. Because of this unique process, stu­dents are find­ing this pro­gram to be more afford­able than oth­er options, mak­ing it one of the high­est demand Bach­e­lors in Legal Stud­ies online.

At Pur­due Uni­ver­si­ty Glob­al, stu­dents are able to fix their start date for their pro­gram to fit their per­son­al needs, tak­ing as many or as lit­tle cours­es as they can to fit their sched­ule. Pur­due Uni­ver­si­ty Glob­al is an insti­tu­tion that is striv­ing to offer the max­i­mum resources for their stu­dents that will assist them with their career goals and help them obtain their edu­ca­tion in their cur­rent lives.

What We Like: Pur­due Uni­ver­si­ty has become a world­wide leader in online edu­ca­tion since acquir­ing Kaplan Uni­ver­si­ty, offer­ing online pro­grams in near­ly every field imag­in­able with Purdue’s edu­ca­tion­al quality.

Pro­gram: BS in Legal Sup­port and Services

Learn more about the online para­le­gal bachelor’s!

13. University of Maryland University College

The BS in Legal Stud­ies pro­gram at the Uni­ver­si­ty of Mary­land Uni­ver­si­ty Col­lege is designed for work­ing stu­dents who want a back­ground in Pre-Law and plan to pur­sue a grad­u­ate pro­gram. Stu­dents who want to attend law school need a sol­id back­ground and foun­da­tion that will pre­pare them for the intense read­ing, writ­ing, and research that comes with law school. The cur­ricu­lum of this pro­gram has a high return on invest­ment of those who have con­tin­ued on to grad­u­ate school and been suc­cess­ful. Because of this, it is one of the lead­ing Bach­e­lors in Legal Stud­ies online.

The fac­ul­ty employed at the Uni­ver­si­ty of Mary­land Uni­ver­si­ty Col­lege under­stand what is need­ed for stu­dents to be suc­cess­ful as they move for­ward with their grad­u­ate stud­ies. The Uni­ver­si­ty of Mary­land Uni­ver­si­ty Col­lege is region­al­ly accred­it­ed by the Mid­dle States Com­mis­sion on High­er Education.

What We Like: UMUC was built for adult stu­dents, and its online pro­grams are some of the best in the world for work­ing pro­fes­sion­als who want to build their career.

Pro­gram: BS in Legal Studies

Learn more about the online para­le­gal bachelor’s!

14. American Public University

An online BS in Legal Stud­ies from Amer­i­can Pub­lic Uni­ver­si­ty is a degree that many stu­dents pur­sue who are active mil­i­tary, vet­er­ans, or work­ing glob­al­ly. Many of the enrolled stu­dents and those who have grad­u­at­ed were active mil­i­tary while obtain­ing their edu­ca­tion. This pro­gram is 100% online and is one of the most afford­able Bach­e­lors in Legal Stud­ies online for stu­dents want­i­ng to begin a pro­fes­sion­al career in law.

The Amer­i­can Pub­lic Uni­ver­si­ty is well-known and one of the more pop­u­lar insti­tu­tions for online learn­ing due to its afford­able rates and its diverse pro­gram options to fit the needs for stu­dents across the nation. Stu­dents with for­mer cred­it can trans­fer in these cred­its to save on their over­all cost and have the option for fed­er­al stu­dent aid. The Amer­i­can Pub­lic Uni­ver­si­ty is accred­it­ed nation­al­ly through the High­er Learn­ing Com­mis­sion and sets the bar for aca­d­e­m­ic standards.

What We Like: Amer­i­can Pub­lic University’s con­nec­tions to the mil­i­tary, the gov­ern­ment, and the pri­vate secu­ri­ty indus­try pro­vide a wide net­work of con­nec­tions for para­le­gal grad­u­ates on the job market.

Pro­gram: BS in Legal Studies

Learn more about the online para­le­gal bachelor’s!

15. Kent State University

The BA in Para­le­gal Stud­ies offered online at Kent State Uni­ver­si­ty is a pro­gram that is approved by the Amer­i­can Bar Asso­ci­a­tion, allow­ing stu­dents the option to take the exam and gain cer­ti­fi­ca­tion for their Para­le­gal sta­tus. They also offer accel­er­at­ed ver­sions of this pro­gram with sev­er­al com­mu­ni­ty col­leges that allow stu­dents who have an Asso­ciate degree in the field to take the nec­es­sary major class­es and accel­er­ate their Bach­e­lor degree. Because of this accel­er­a­tion and accred­i­ta­tion, many stu­dents are con­sid­er­ing this pro­gram to be one of the best online para­le­gal programs.

Kent State Uni­ver­si­ty is an insti­tu­tion known for its fac­ul­ty to pro­vide only excel­lence in the class­room and offer above stan­dard cur­ricu­lum for their pro­grams. Kent State Uni­ver­si­ty is ranked in the top 100 insti­tu­tions for grad­u­ate edu­ca­tion across the Unit­ed States.

What We Like: In 2018, Kent State was ranked nation­al­ly as a Top Tier insti­tu­tion by U.S. News and World Report.

Pro­gram: BA in Para­le­gal Studies

Learn more about the online para­le­gal bachelor’s!

Can You Get a Paralegal Degree Online?

The legal sec­tor is rapid­ly grow­ing and high­ly-paid, so many peo­ple are look­ing to get their foot in the door by becom­ing para­le­gals. Many prospec­tive para­le­gals are mov­ing into the legal field from oth­er pro­fes­sions, look­ing for a high­er-pay­ing job with more career poten­tial. How­ev­er, these peo­ple are usu­al­ly already work­ing full-time, so it is dif­fi­cult for them to attend a tra­di­tion­al program.

Thank­ful­ly there are many high-qual­i­ty para­le­gal degree pro­grams avail­able online. There are also many para­le­gal pro­grams avail­able in a hybrid for­mat. This means that some class­es are online and some class­es are face-to-face. And thanks to this flex­i­bil­i­ty, an online pro­gram may allow a work­ing pro­fes­sion­al to com­plete their degree more quick­ly. Depend­ing on which school stu­dents choose they may even be able to save mon­ey on tuition as com­pared to a tra­di­tion­al col­lege. It is now eas­i­er to get a para­le­gal degree online from a high-qual­i­ty uni­ver­si­ty than it has ever been in the past. The answer to the ques­tion can you get a para­le­gal degree online is a resound­ing yes.

Will Employers Trust an Online Paralegal Bachelor’s Degree?

In years gone by, employ­ers tend­ed to look down on degrees from online col­leges. How­ev­er, this is no longer the case. In the ear­ly years of online edu­ca­tion, most of the schools that offer online degrees or unac­cred­it­ed and set up only for online stu­dents. Today, there are quite a few accred­it­ed online uni­ver­si­ties. Even most tra­di­tion­al uni­ver­si­ties, includ­ing small but pres­ti­gious insti­tu­tions, offer pro­grams avail­able com­plete­ly online. This phe­nom­e­non has raised the pres­tige of an online degree considerably.

Of course, employ­ers would not even nec­es­sar­i­ly know that you obtained your degree online. Schools that offer online degrees usu­al­ly issue diplo­mas that don’t say any­thing about the online for­mat — they will look exact­ly the same as the diplo­ma of stu­dents who attend­ed class­es in a tra­di­tion­al format.

Even If an employ­er does­n’t know that you’ve com­plet­ed your degree online, they will not look down that as long as is it is accred­it­ed. There are two main types of accred­i­ta­tion for para­le­gal pro­grams. The first is the region­al accred­i­ta­tion for the insti­tu­tion. Region­al accred­i­ta­tion is for the insti­tu­tion as a whole and includes all of the school’s pro­grams. A degree in any field is worth much more if it is from a region­al­ly accred­it­ed insti­tu­tion. In fact, if it is not from region­al­ly accred­it­ed insti­tu­tion many employ­ers will not even accept it.

Sec­ond­ly, there is accred­i­ta­tion specif­i­cal­ly for the pro­gram. The Amer­i­can Bar Asso­ci­a­tion offers an offi­cial approval for para­le­gal pro­grams, though not an accred­i­ta­tion. How­ev­er, the ABA does not offi­cial­ly approve any online pro­grams. Even if they don’t, that does not mean that employ­ers will not accept the degree. It sim­ply means that the degree is not quite as prestigious.

Does the American Bar Association Approve Online Paralegal Programs?

As pre­vi­ous­ly men­tioned, the main accred­i­ta­tion offer to pro­grams is from the Amer­i­can Bar Asso­ci­a­tion. The best-known legal orga­ni­za­tion, the ABA only offers accred­i­ta­tion to law schools. Law schools refer to schools that offer the JD degree that enables grad­u­ate’s to take the bar exam and become licensed attor­neys. Its para­le­gal pro­gram is tech­ni­cal­ly not part of the law school. There­fore, it can­not be accred­it­ed. How­ev­er, schools that have ABA-accred­it­ed law schools are gen­er­al­ly held in high regard by employ­ers in the legal field. This is true even though the para­le­gal pro­grams are not specif­i­cal­ly accred­it­ed by the APA.

A para­le­gal pro­gram at a school with an accred­it­ed law school gen­er­al­ly can ben­e­fit from a high­er qual­i­ty of pro­fes­sors and per­haps even a high­er qual­i­ty of cur­ricu­lum. How­ev­er, it is not one hun­dred per­cent nec­es­sary to get a para­le­gal degree from a school that also has an ABA-accred­it­ed law school. Many suc­cess­ful para­le­gals received their degrees from insti­tu­tions that do not have an accred­it­ed law school. It sim­ply helps the pres­tige of a para­le­gal degree a lit­tle bit if it is from an insti­tu­tion that does have a well-respect­ed and accred­it­ed law school.

Relat­ed Rankings:

25 Best Bach­e­lor’s in Para­le­gal Degree Pro­grams
10 Fastest Online Para­le­gal Degree Bach­e­lor’s Pro­grams
10 Most Afford­able Para­le­gal Degree Bach­e­lor Programs