Paralegals play a key role in the complex and exciting legal industry. While lawyers are ultimately responsible for legal work, many tasks are often delegated to paralegals. If you are interested in training for a new career or advancing in the legal industry, the Associate of Science in Applied Paralegal Studies from Leighton University can be the first step on the path to career success.
Typically, our students enroll in this program to pursue a career in a legal environment such as a private law firm, corporation, or government agency. This program offers courses in the basic understanding of the core areas of law and court systems to help you stand out in the competitive job market. In addition, the program provides a balance of legal-specialty courses, courses in special topics, and general education requirements that gives students a base upon which they can communicate effectively with clients as well as the public and people in the legal system. Legal specialty courses are offered primarily in the evening to accommodate those with daytime jobs and family responsibilities. As a student of the program, you can learn how to prepare for litigation, provide administrative support during courtroom proceedings, interview witnesses, and research legal issues.
The Associate of Arts in Economics is designed to enable a student to transfer to a four-year college/university, this degree emphasizes student completion of 42-46 hours of general education, 12 hours in an area of concentration, and 4-8 hours of electives.
Associates of Science – Applied Paralegal Studies
Program Length: 65 credit hours
Accepted Transfer Credits: 45 Credit hours
Program Goals and Objective
At the completion of this course of study, students should be able to do the following:
Analyze data and information to ethically assist clients throughout the legal process
Locate and analyze relevant primary and secondary legal sources in electronic and print media
Use investigative techniques to gather information from witnesses and other sources
Use oral and written skills to communicate with participants throughout the legal process
Analyze legal documents and maintain legal schedules
Draft and organize legal documents and records
Prepare and organize pretrial documents and records
Prepare office documents and forms
Critical Graduation Information:
To earn a degree, all students must:
- Earn a minimum total of 65 credits, excluding credits below the 100-level
- Meet the general education requirements referenced here.
- Earn a minimum of 20 credits from Leighton University to meet degree requirements.
- Have earned a grade of ¨C¨ or better in order to apply transfer credit an accredited institution.
- Have a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0 in order to graduate.
- Must have paid in full all current debts to the University.
ADMISSION
Program Admission Requirements
To gain admission to the Program, an applicant must first complete the University’s Application for Admission form, along with the required $18.00 application fee (an additional $35.00 fee is assessed for applicants seeking transfer credit). All payments submitted for tuition and fees must be payable in U.S. dollars. Payments may be made in US dollars by check , money order, or credit card. Applicants must provide verification of High School graduation, GED, or the equivalency
Foreign Applicants and Applicants with International Credentials
Applicants whose native language is not English and who have not earned a degree from an appropriately accredited institution where English is the principal language of instruction must receive a minimum score of 500 on the paper-based Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL PBT), or 61 on the Internet Based Test (iBT), or a 6.0 on the International English Language Test (IELTS).
Transcripts not in English must be evaluated by an appropriate third party and translated into English or a trained transcript evaluator fluent in the language on the transcript. For more information on TOEFL visit the website: www.ets.org/toefl
Foreign Degree Evaluation
Applicants wishing to transfer in credits or degrees earned at institutions located outside the United States must have their academic transcripts evaluated and certified by World Education Service (WES) or any organization recognized the by the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services, Inc.(NACES). Applicants will be assessed a fee by the certifying organization and should request that the report be sent directly to Leighton University.