Award: Certificate in Legal Studies
| No. of credits required: | 35-37 |
For more information: Contact Prof. Weston A. Park,
443-412-2434, wpark@harford.edu, or Advising, Career, and
Transfer Services, 443-412-2301.
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
A legal assistant or paralegal is a person, qualified by
education, training, or work experience who is employed or
retained by a lawyer, law office, corporation, governmental
agency or other entity and who performs specifically delegated
substantive legal work for which a lawyer is responsible. ABA
Guideline G-103(d). Paralegals may not provide legal services
directly to the public, except as permitted by law.
The objective of the Paralegal Studies Certificate of the Legal
Studies Program is to educate and train laypersons to assist
attorneys and other legal professionals in their daily tasks and
thereby contribute to the fair, economical and efficient
delivery of legal services. The program meets this objective by
requiring students to successfully complete its curriculum.
The Certificate in Paralegal Studies is designed to permit those
students who desire to work in the legal field as paralegals,
but who already have an associate or baccalaureate degree, to
earn a recognized credential that would enhance their ability
to secure employment.
PROGRAM GOALS
Upon completion of the AAS or Certificate in Paralegal Studies, students will be able to:
- Apply paralegal skills to assist attorneys and other legal professionals in their daily professional tasks.
- Decide ethical questions consistent with legal ethics.
- Employ writing and verbal skills that enable them to perform successfully in the legal profession.
- Obtain employment as a paralegal.
REQUIRED COURSES
* PL 110 is generally offered in the fall semester,
in the evening.
** PL 248 and PL 273 require students to spend
approximately 135 hours in law office settings
during normal business hours.
*** Students should contact Advising, Career and Transfer services for permission to register for Cooperative Education courses, 443-412-2301.
**** Permission of the Paralegal Program Coordinator
is required to transfer more than 8 credit hours of
required paralegal courses. A maximum of 15
transfer credits will be allowed for all paralegal
courses (required and electives).
GAINFUL EMPLOYMENT
Paralegal, 35-37 credits
CIP: 22.0302
SOC: 23-2010, 23-2011
Occupations: Paralegal/Legal assistant
Link to O*Net: http://www.onetonline.org/find/result?s=paralegal&g=Go
Tuition and Fees: $4898
Time to Completion: 2 years
Note: The 2011-2012 Catalog was used to define credits to completion, and program cost.
Program length is calculated based on average 9 credits per semester, assumed the student was college ready and not required to take developmental course(s).
These figures are based on estimations, and do not include any increases that may occur in course materials or credit fees.
For additional information go to: http://www.harford.edu/catalog/pdf/gainful-employment.pdf
|
|
CERTIFICATE REQUIREMENTS
Students earning a certificate from HCC must complete or demonstrate exemption from the following courses: ENG 003
and ENG 012, or ENG 018; and MATH 001 or MATH 010. See graduation
requirement details in this catalog for further information.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Permission of the Paralegal Program Coordinator is required
to transfer more than 8 credit hours of required paralegal
courses into the program. A maximum of 15 transfer credits
will be allowed for all paralegal courses (required and
electives).
EMPLOYMENT INFORMATION
Upon completion of the program, opportunities for employment include law firms, legal departments of banks and other corporations as well as government agencies.
The demand for paralegals is growing on the national, state, and local levels. The U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts a much faster than average rate of growth for paralegal employment through 2018. In Harford County, rapid population growth has brought about a related need for legal services. The employment outlook for graduates of this program in Harford County and the surrounding area is good.
|
English Composition
Arts/Humanities
Interdisciplinary and Emerging Issues
Biological/Physical Laboratory Science
Mathematics
Biological/Physical Science