Paralegal BAS

The Paralegal program educates and trains students to perform substantive and procedural legal work under the supervision of a lawyer. Paralegals are non-lawyers who assist attorneys in their professional duties. Two options are available in the Paralegal program: an 63-credit AAS degree program and a 30-credit Intermediate Technical Certificate program.  Upon completion of the Paralegal AAS degree, students will:

  • Be able to think critically
  • Demonstrate organizational skills
  • Work effectively with a variety of legal office professionals and clients
  • Understand and apply legal ethics as required by law
  • Demonstrate in-depth understanding of the legal system and its various agencies
  • Demonstrate solid interviewing and investigation skills
  • Draft legal documents and memoranda pertinent to specific areas of law
  • Demonstrate excellent writing, listening, and speaking skills
  • Demonstrate knowledge in legal research and writing skills
  • Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of a variety of computer programs
  • Maintain confidentiality

Completion of a Technical Skill Assessment is required.

BAS Requires the following:

  • Earned AAS Degree in same major as BAS
  • Gen Ed Core 37 credits
  • AAS program courses for a maximum of 50 credits (note: this can be less than 50 credits)
  • 33 credits of approved upper-division coursework
  • Total Credits Required for BAS is 120

General Education Requirements

Written Communication
Select one of the following:6.00
WRITING AND RHETORIC I
and WRITING AND RHETORIC II
COLLEGE WRITING AND RESEARCH
Oral Communication
Select one from the following:3.00
FUNDAMENTALS OF ORAL COMMUNICATION
SMALL GROUP COMMUNICATION
PUBLIC SPEAKING
Mathematical Ways of Knowing
Select one of the following:3.00-5.00
INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTER SCIENCE
INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTER SCIENCE
MATH IN MODERN SOCIETY
FINITE MATHEMATICS
PRECALCULUS I: ALGEBRA
PRECALCULUS
STATISTICAL REASONING
CALCULUS I
STATISTICAL METHODS FOR THE SCIENCES
MATHEMATICS FOR ELEMENTARY TEACHERS II
FINITE MATHEMATICS
MATH FOR TECHNOLOGY
STATISTICAL REASONING
Humanistic & Artistic Ways of Knowing
Select one course from two categories:6.00-8.00
Literature
LITERATURE AND IDEAS
WORLD CLASSICS
INTERNATIONAL LITERATURE
NATIVE AMERICAN LITERATURE
MYTHOLOGIES
Arts
INTRODUCTION TO ART
THE ART AND HISTORY OF THE MOTION PICTURE
INTRODUCTION TO THE ARTS
SURVEY OF MUSIC
MUSIC IN AMERICA
WORLD MUSIC
HISTORY OF MUSICAL THEATER
HISTORY OF JAZZ AND POPULAR MUSIC STYLES
SURVEY OF THE THEATER
Language
NEZ PERCE LANGUAGE AND CULTURE
NEZ PERCE LANGUAGE AND HISTORY
ELEMENTARY SPANISH I
ELEMENTARY SPANISH II
Scientific Ways of Knowing
Select one course from two disciplines; one lab7.00-8.00
INTRODUCTION TO BIOINFORMATICS
CONCEPTS OF BIOLOGY
PLANTS AND PEOPLE
BIOLOGY IN FILM
HUMAN BIOLOGY
HUMAN ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY I
CONCEPTS OF CHEMISTRY
GENERAL, ORGANIC AND BIOCHEMISTRY
PRINCIPLES OF CHEMISTRY I
SEMICONDUCTORS, SCIENCE, AND SOCIETY
INTRODUCTION TO FORENSIC SCIENCE
PHYSICAL GEOLOGY
INTRODUCTION TO EARTH SYSTEMS
GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS
INTEGRATED SCIENCE II
INTEGRATED SCIENCE I
INTRODUCTION TO NATURAL SCIENCES 1
NATURAL SCIENCE FOR ELEMENTARY EDUCATOR
GENERAL PHYSICS I
GENERAL PHYSICS II
PHYS SCIENCES FOR ELEMENTARY EDUCATORS
DESCRIPTIVE ASTRONOMY
PHYSICS FOR SCIENTISTS AND ENGINEERS I
Social & Behavioral Ways of Knowing
Select one course from two disciplines:6.00
CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY
WORLD PREHISTORY
INTRODUCTION TO NATIVE AMERICAN STUDIES
PRINCIPLES OF MACROECONOMICS
PRINCIPLES OF MICROECONOMICS
INTRODUCTION TO GEOGRAPHY
WORLD HISTORY I
WORLD HISTORY II
UNITED STATES HISTORY I
UNITED STATES HISTORY II
DIVERSITY IN ORGANIZATIONS
HUMAN RELATIONS IN ORGANIZATIONS
AMERICAN NATIONAL GOVERNMENT
INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
COMPARATIVE GOVERNMENT
INTRODUCTION TO GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY
LIFESPAN DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY
INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
SOCIAL PROBLEMS
DIVERSITY IN ORGANIZATIONS
HUMAN RELATIONS IN ORGANIZATIONS
Global Perspectives
Select one of the following:3.00-4.00
CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY
WORLD PREHISTORY
INTRODUCTION TO NATIVE AMERICAN STUDIES
RACE AND ETHNICITY
INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION
INTERNATIONAL LITERATURE
NATIVE AMERICAN WRITTEN LITERATURE
INTRODUCTION TO GEOGRAPHY
WORLD HISTORY I
WORLD HISTORY II
UNITED STATES HISTORY I
UNITED STATES HISTORY II
DIVERSITY IN ORGANIZATIONS
ETHICS AND IDENTITY
SOCIAL-CULTURAL ASPECTS OF SPORTS
NEZ PERCE LANGUAGE AND CULTURE
NEZ PERCE LANGUAGE AND HISTORY
COMPARATIVE GOVERNMENT
INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
ELEMENTARY SPANISH I
ELEMENTARY SPANISH II
INTERMEDIATE SPANISH I
INTERMEDIATE SPANISH II
DIVERSITY IN ORGANIZATIONS
Integrative Seminar: Ethics & Values
Select one of the following:3.00
ID 300A - 300Z (see course descriptions for options)
HELLS CANYON INSTITUTE
Foreign/Heritage Language
Select 16 credits of language if selecting Bachelor of Arts Degree16.00
Total Credits37.00-43.00

Program Requirements

AAS Program Courses  
Apply up to 50 credits from an earned AAS in Paralegal 50.00
BAS Program Requirements  
Select a minimum of 33 credits from the following: 33.00
REAL ESTATE LAW AND PROCEDURES  
ADVANCED CIVIL LITIGATION  
WILLS, TRUSTS, AND ESTATES  
BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS  
FAMILY LAW  
TORT LAW  
INTERNSHIP IN LAW  
INTERNSHIP IN LAW I  
Select 10 credits at the 300/400 level
 
Total Credits 83.00

Sequential Plan of Study

Plan of Study Grid
First Year
Fall Credits
CORE Mathematical Ways of Knowing 3.00
CORE Oral Communication 3.00
CORE Scientific Ways of Knowing 3.00
ENGL-101 WRITING AND RHETORIC I 3.00
GNBPT-110 BUSINESS COMPUTER SKILLS 3.00
  Credits 15.00
Spring
ENGL-102 WRITING AND RHETORIC II 3.00
CORE Humanistic & Artistic Ways of Knowing 3.00
CORE Social & Behavioral Ways of Knowing 3.00
LAWPT-219 LEGAL TERMINOLOGY 3.00
LAWPT-223 LEGAL SUPPORT FUNDAMENTALS AND ETHICS 3.00
  Credits 15.00
Second Year
Fall
CORE Global Perspectives 3.00
CORE Humanistic & Artistic Ways of Knowing 3.00
CORE Scientific Ways of Knowing 4.00
LAWPT-294A INTERNSHIP IN LAW I 3.00
Elective Elective Credits 3.00
  Credits 16.00
Spring
CORE Integrative Seminar: Ethics & Values 3.00
CORE Social & Behavioral Ways of Knowing 3.00
GNBPT-185 BUSINESS COMMUNICATION 3.00
GNBPT-200 BUSINESS DOCUMENT PROCESSING 3.00
LAWPT-224 INTRODUCTION TO LAW 3.00
  Credits 15.00
Third Year
Fall
ACCPT-101 BASIC ACCOUNTING I 3.00
GNBPT-222 BUSINESS EDITING 3.00
GNBPT-233 OFFICE PROCEDURES 3.00
Elective Elective Credits 3.00
  Credits 12.00
Spring
LAWPT-230 LEGAL RESEARCH AND WRITING I 3.00
LAWPT-265 BUSINESS LAW I 3.00
LAWPT-274 LEGAL PROCEDURES 3.00
LAWPT-322 PARALEGAL PROCEDURES FOR CRIMINAL LAW 3.00
Elective Elective Credits 3.00
  Credits 15.00
Fourth Year
Fall
LAWPT-323 CIVIL LITIGATION 3.00
LAWPT-331 LEGAL RESEARCH AND WRITING II 3.00
LAWPT-341 BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS 2.00
LAWPT-345 TORT LAW 3.00
Elective Elective Credits 3.00
  Credits 14.00
Spring
LAWPT-321 REAL ESTATE LAW AND PROCEDURES 3.00
LAWPT-324 ADVANCED CIVIL LITIGATION 3.00
LAWPT-332 WILLS, TRUSTS, AND ESTATES 3.00
LAWPT-342 FAMILY LAW 3.00
LAWPT-367 INTERNSHIP IN LAW 3.00
LAWPT-494A INTERNSHIP IN LAW I 3.00
  Credits 18.00
  Total Credits 120.00

Graduates from Paralegal programs go on to obtain careers in a variety of fields:

  • Legal Assistant
  • Law Clerk
  • Litigation or Judicial Assistant
  • Legal Practice Assistant
  • Court Clerk
  • Title/Abstract Examiner
  • Legal Researcher
  • Contract Specialist
  • Claims Adjuster
  • Court Assistance Program Specialist
  • Limited Practice Officer