Paralegal AAS

The Paralegal Associate's Degree 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.

Upon completion of this 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.

General Education Requirements

Written Communication
ENGL-101WRITING AND RHETORIC I3.00
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
MATH IN MODERN SOCIETY
FINITE MATHEMATICS
COLLEGE ALGEBRA
COLLEGE ALGEBRA AND TRIGONOMETRY
STATISTICAL REASONING
CALCULUS I
STATISTICAL METHODS FOR THE SCIENCES
MATHEMATICS FOR ELEMENTARY TEACHERS II
FINITE MATHEMATICS
MATH FOR TECHNOLOGY
STATISTICAL REASONING
Social & Behavioral Ways of Knowing
HRPT/SS-185HUMAN RELATIONS IN ORGANIZATIONS3.00
Additional General Education Courses
Select one of the following:3.00-5.00
CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY
WORLD PREHISTORY
INTRODUCTION TO NATIVE AMERICAN STUDIES
RACE AND ETHNICITY
INTRODUCTION TO ART
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
INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION
INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTER SCIENCE
PRINCIPLES OF MACROECONOMICS
PRINCIPLES OF MICROECONOMICS
WRITING AND RHETORIC II
COLLEGE WRITING AND RESEARCH
LITERATURE AND IDEAS
WORLD CLASSICS
INTERNATIONAL LITERATURE
NATIVE AMERICAN LITERATURE
MYTHOLOGIES
NATIVE AMERICAN WRITTEN LITERATURE
INTRODUCTION TO FORENSIC SCIENCE
INTRODUCTION TO GEOGRAPHY
PHYSICAL GEOLOGY
INTRODUCTION TO EARTH SYSTEMS
GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS
THE ART AND HISTORY OF THE MOTION PICTURE
INTRODUCTION TO THE ARTS
WORLD HISTORY I
WORLD HISTORY II
UNITED STATES HISTORY I
UNITED STATES HISTORY II
DIVERSITY IN ORGANIZATIONS
ID-300A - ID-300Z (see course descriptions for options)
INTEGRATED SCIENCE II
HELLS CANYON INSTITUTE
SOCIAL-CULTURAL ASPECTS OF SPORTS
SURVEY OF MUSIC
MUSIC IN AMERICA
WORLD MUSIC
HISTORY OF MUSICAL THEATER
HISTORY OF JAZZ AND POPULAR MUSIC STYLES
NEZ PERCE LANGUAGE AND CULTURE
NEZ PERCE LANGUAGE AND HISTORY
INTEGRATED SCIENCE I
INTRODUCTION TO NATURAL SCIENCES
NATURAL SCIENCE FOR ELEMENTARY EDUCATOR
GENERAL PHYSICS I
GENERAL PHYSICS II
PHYS SCIENCES FOR ELEMENTARY EDUCATORS
DESCRIPTIVE ASTRONOMY
PHYSICS FOR SCIENTISTS AND ENGINEERS I
AMERICAN NATIONAL GOVERNMENT
INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
COMPARATIVE GOVERNMENT
INTRODUCTION TO GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY
LIFESPAN DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY
INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
SOCIAL PROBLEMS
ELEMENTARY SPANISH I
ELEMENTARY SPANISH II
INTERMEDIATE SPANISH I
INTERMEDIATE SPANISH II
SURVEY OF THE THEATER
Total Credits15.00-19.00

Program Requirements

GNBPT-101BASIC ACCOUNTING3.00
GNBPT-110BUSINESS COMPUTER SKILLS3.00
GNBPT-185BUSINESS COMMUNICATION3.00
GNBPT-222BUSINESS EDITING3.00
GNBPT-233OFFICE PROCEDURES3.00
LAWPT-219LEGAL TERMINOLOGY3.00
LAWPT-223LEGAL SUPPORT FUNDAMENTALS AND ETHICS3.00
LAWPT-224INTRODUCTION TO LAW3.00
LAWPT-230LEGAL RESEARCH AND WRITING I3.00
LAWPT-265BUSINESS LAW I3.00
or LAWPT-365 BUSINESS LAW II
LAWPT-274LEGAL PROCEDURES3.00
LAWPT-294AINTERNSHIP IN LAW I3.00
LAWPT-322PARALEGAL PROCEDURES FOR CRIMINAL LAW3.00
LAWPT-323CIVIL LITIGATION3.00
LAWPT-331LEGAL RESEARCH AND WRITING II3.00
Completion of a Technical Skills Assessment is required
Total Credits45.00

Sequential Plan of Study

Plan of Study Grid
First Year
FallCredits
COREMathematical Ways of Knowing 3.00
ENGL-101 WRITING AND RHETORIC I 3.00
GNBPT-110 BUSINESS COMPUTER SKILLS 3.00
LAWPT-219 LEGAL TERMINOLOGY 3.00
LAWPT-223 LEGAL SUPPORT FUNDAMENTALS AND ETHICS 3.00
 Credits15.00
Spring
GNBPT-101 BASIC ACCOUNTING 3.00
GNBPT-185 BUSINESS COMMUNICATION 3.00
GNBPT-233 OFFICE PROCEDURES 3.00
HRPT/SS-185
HUMAN RELATIONS IN ORGANIZATIONS
or HUMAN RELATIONS IN ORGANIZATIONS
3.00
LAWPT-224 INTRODUCTION TO LAW 3.00
 Credits15.00
Second Year
Fall
COREAdditional General Education Course 3.00
COREOral Communication 3.00
GNBPT-222 BUSINESS EDITING 3.00
LAWPT-230 LEGAL RESEARCH AND WRITING I 3.00
LAWPT-274 LEGAL PROCEDURES 3.00
 Credits15.00
Spring
LAWPT-265
BUSINESS LAW I
or BUSINESS LAW II
3.00
LAWPT-294A INTERNSHIP IN LAW I 3.00
LAWPT-322 PARALEGAL PROCEDURES FOR CRIMINAL LAW 3.00
LAWPT-323 CIVIL LITIGATION 3.00
LAWPT-331 LEGAL RESEARCH AND WRITING II 3.00
 Credits15.00
 Total Credits60.00

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

Check out the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics website for more information about the potential careers listed above.