Internships In Ranked Paralegal Certificate Programs
Paralegal Internship: Which Certificate Programs Require One
Hours, where required School pages
54 to 216
as 11 required programs state them; the low end reads "54 or more hours"
Paralegal Internship Rules At A Glance
- Whether you need one depends on the certificate. By their own pages, 24 or more of the 72 ABA-approved certificates in the national ranking require a paralegal internship, five more make it an either-or and 25 more offer it as an elective or option.
- Where a required internship states its hours, they run from 54 or more hours to 216 hours, and some pages fit them into a single semester.
- At least two pages describe pay, and they differ: Southwestern College (Chula Vista, California) counts hours that are "paid or volunteer", and Fullerton College (Fullerton, California) calls its elective internship "unpaid".
- Who finds the placement differs by school: West Valley College (Saratoga, California) and Delaware County Community College (Media, Pennsylvania) let students choose the employer or setting, and College of Lake County (Grayslake, Illinois) says "We place every student for field work before graduation."
- The online ranking holds 33 certificates that can be finished online in whole or in part. At least 11 require a paralegal internship, and ten of those are among the 28 that can be finished entirely online.
Do you need a paralegal internship? It depends on the certificate. The national ranking holds 72 ABA-approved certificates, and by their own pages at least 24 require one and 54 or more describe one in some form. Programs call it an internship, a practicum, cooperative education or a field placement, and this post counts all four.
Which Certificates Require A Paralegal Internship
The 54 certificates whose pages describe a paralegal internship fall into three groups, and each counts once. Each statement was read on the school's own pages on October 8, 2026 and confirmed by a second reader; the group a certificate is counted in is this site's reading of it. Every count is of pages that describe one, so each is a minimum.
| Group | At least | Share of 72 |
|---|---|---|
| Require an internship | 24 | 33% |
| Make it an either-or | 5 | 7% |
| Offer it as an elective or option | 25 | 35% |
| All three groups | 54 | 75% |
An either-or lets a student meet one requirement with the internship or with one named alternative, such as a capstone course. An elective is one of three or more courses a student picks from. An option is a placement a program offers or recommends outside the certificate's own courses.
Fewer than half of those 54 require it. The 24 that do are below, in national-ranking order.
| School | National rank |
|---|---|
| Pasadena City College Pasadena, California | 1 |
| College of the Canyons Santa Clarita, California | 4 |
| West Valley College Saratoga, California | 8 |
| Cuyahoga Community College Parma, Ohio | 18 |
| Southwestern College Chula Vista, California | 22 |
| Arapahoe Community College Littleton, Colorado | 23 |
| Los Angeles City College Los Angeles, California | 26 |
| Tacoma Community College Tacoma, Washington | 28 |
| Elgin Community College Elgin, Illinois | 29 |
| Grand Valley State University Grand Rapids, Michigan | 30 |
| Missouri Western State University Saint Joseph, Missouri | 37 |
| Harford Community College Bel Air, Maryland | 38 |
| Monroe Community College Rochester, New York | 42 |
| Enterprise State Community College Enterprise, Alabama | 46 |
| Lakeland Community College Kirtland, Ohio | 49 |
| Rowan College of South Jersey Sewell, New Jersey | 50 |
| NHTI, Concord's Community College Concord, New Hampshire | 51 |
| Bucks County Community College Newtown, Pennsylvania | 53 |
| Inver Hills Community College Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota | 58 |
| University of Toledo Toledo, Ohio | 62 |
| Community College of Baltimore County Baltimore, Maryland | 63 |
| College of DuPage Glen Ellyn, Illinois | 66 |
| South Suburban College South Holland, Illinois | 71 |
| Delaware County Community College Media, Pennsylvania | 72 |
One of them is titled as a business internship rather than a legal one: Enterprise State Community College (Enterprise, Alabama) requires "BUS 296 Business Internship". Elsewhere the rule can be as plain as this:
"The paralegal certificate curriculum requires students to complete a paralegal internship."
Elgin Community College (Elgin, Illinois)
College of the Canyons (Santa Clarita, California) gives its own reason: the program "requires internship, assisting students to be more marketable upon graduation".
When An Internship Is One Option Among Several
Some certificates let the student choose. At Front Range Community College (Westminster, Colorado), one requirement reads "Capstone (PAR 2089) or Internship (PAR 2080)". At North Hennepin Community College (Minneapolis, Minnesota), the student "must complete 150 hours of work at the internship site" or "complete the alternative legal practicum coursework".
Where it is an elective or an option, schools word it differently:
- Cerritos College (Norwalk, California) answers its own FAQ with "Must I take work experience or perform an internship? A. No." and calls work experience "an elective class".
- Mt. San Antonio College (Walnut, California) says "Although not required for graduation, PLGL 36, Paralegal Internship, is recommended."
- Middlesex Community College (Lowell, Massachusetts) says "Students should plan on taking an internship in preparation for the workplace."
A school's degree can treat a paralegal internship differently from its certificate. Lehigh Carbon Community College (Schnecksville, Pennsylvania) says "A 225 hour 3 credit internship is a required component of the Paralegal Studies degree program. It is an elective in the certificate program, however, it is strongly recommended that students without legal experience participate in the internship."
How Long A Paralegal Internship Lasts
At least 15 ranked certificates give hours for the internship, 11 or more of them for a required one. Among required internships the figures run from 54 or more hours to 216 hours.
| School | Hours as stated | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Lehigh Carbon Community College Schnecksville, Pennsylvania | 225 hours | Elective |
| Pasadena City College Pasadena, California | 216 hours | Required |
| Rowan College of South Jersey Sewell, New Jersey | 210 hours | Required |
| South Suburban College South Holland, Illinois | a minimum of 210 hours | Required |
| University of Toledo Toledo, Ohio | a minimum of 180 hours | Required |
| Delaware County Community College Media, Pennsylvania | 180 hours | Required |
| North Hennepin Community College Minneapolis, Minnesota | 150 hours | Either-or |
| Bunker Hill Community College Boston, Massachusetts | 150 hours | Elective |
| Harford Community College Bel Air, Maryland | approximately 135 hours | Required |
| Tacoma Community College Tacoma, Washington | a minimum of 132 hours | Required |
| College of DuPage Glen Ellyn, Illinois | 120 hours | Required |
| Los Angeles City College Los Angeles, California | 108 hours | Required |
| Lakeland Community College Kirtland, Ohio | 100 hours | Required |
| Southwestern College Chula Vista, California | 54 or more hours | Required |
| Fullerton College Fullerton, California | 54-162 hours per term | Elective |
The top figure belongs to an elective, so the range for required internships stays 54 or more hours to 216 hours.
Some pages say how the hours are spread. College of DuPage (Glen Ellyn, Illinois) puts them at "approximately eight hours per week during the fall and spring semesters", and Bunker Hill Community College (Boston, Massachusetts) says students "perform 150 hours of internship service over the course of 10-15 weeks, during the spring, fall, or summer semesters". Fullerton College (Fullerton, California) counts by the unit: "Each unit of the course requires 54 hours of unpaid, supervised internship". The whole certificate's length is in how long a paralegal certificate takes.
Who Finds The Placement And Where Interns Work
At some schools the student chooses. At West Valley College (Saratoga, California), students get "a required hands-on internship from an approved employer of their choosing", and at Delaware County Community College (Media, Pennsylvania) the internship is "in the law office or legal environment of their choice". Lehigh Carbon Community College (Schnecksville, Pennsylvania) says "If you elect an internship, Paralegal Studies students are responsible for locating and selecting internship placement sites." College of Lake County (Grayslake, Illinois), where it is an either-or, says "We place every student for field work before graduation."
The settings the pages name include law firms and offices, government agencies and corporations:
- Lakeland Community College (Kirtland, Ohio): "a law office or corporate or government based legal setting"
- North Hennepin Community College (Minneapolis, Minnesota): "a private or public law office, corporate or government legal department, or other appropriate law-related setting"
- San Diego Miramar College (San Diego, California): "law firms, government agencies, and businesses"
Several pages also say who supervises. College of DuPage (Glen Ellyn, Illinois) has interns "working in a legal setting under the supervision of an attorney", Rowan College of South Jersey (Sewell, New Jersey) has its practicum hours "served under the supervision of a practicing attorney", and Los Angeles City College (Los Angeles, California) says "Students are supervised by an attorney, paralegal supervisor, or other legal personnel."
The Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Outlook Handbook says "Most paralegals and legal assistants work in law offices." Where paralegals work sets out the employers and what each pays.
When The Internship Comes, And Students Who Work Full Time
Some pages put the paralegal internship at the end of the program. Cuyahoga Community College (Parma, Ohio) places its practicum "in the students' final term of study", and South Suburban College (South Holland, Illinois) says "hands-on experience is gained in the last semester of the program through an internship in a legal or law-related setting". Some need planning a term ahead: Inver Hills Community College (Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota) says "Students must obtain the program director’s written approval one semester in advance of registration for internship."
The hours can fall in the working day. Harford Community College (Bel Air, Maryland) says its placement courses "require students to spend approximately 135 hours in law office settings during normal business hours".
Some pages speak to students who work full time. Elgin Community College (Elgin, Illinois) requires one, and its catalog adds: "Students already employed in the legal field as legal assistants, paralegals, or in another position that requires legal knowledge and skill may request work credit in place of an internship." Bucks County Community College (Newtown, Pennsylvania) says "Arrangements will be made to accommodate those students who are currently employed full time to help them complete the internship requirement." Delaware County Community College (Media, Pennsylvania) says one of its courses "is designed for students who work full time in other than a legal field and need to satisfy the internship requirement to complete the Legal Paralegal Studies Program". The working adults ranking lists 24 certificates, and at least nine require a paralegal internship.
Internships In Online Paralegal Certificates
The online paralegal programs ranking holds 33 ABA-approved certificates that can be finished online in whole or in part. By their own pages, 24 or more describe a paralegal internship: 11 require it, three make it an either-or and ten offer it as an elective or option. The 100% online paralegal certificate ranking holds the 28 that can be finished entirely online, and at least ten require one.
Online study and a required internship can go together: Bucks County Community College (Newtown, Pennsylvania) says "Both the Paralegal/Legal Studies Degree and Paralegal Certificate Program can be completed virtually" and "Both programs have an internship requirement".
An online program's placement can still be on site. North Hennepin Community College (Minneapolis, Minnesota), also in the online ranking, describes "on-site office work completed at an internship site" and lets a student "complete the alternative legal practicum coursework" instead.
Paralegal Internship Questions, Answered
Do paralegals have to do an internship?
How long is a paralegal internship?
Do paralegal interns get paid?
Do online paralegal certificates include an internship?
Who finds the internship placement?
Does a paralegal internship earn college credit?
Sources For Internship Rules
- ABA directory, September 30, 2026
- IPEDS 2023-24: awards, tuition, graduation rates
- School program pages, read October 1-8, 2026
- Each program's internship statement: its own pages, read October 8, 2026 and confirmed by a second reader.
- Hours and other lines for six programs: their own pages, as quoted in their profiles on this site.
- The job: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, Paralegals and Legal Assistants, page last modified August 27, 2026.
- The certificates counted: the national ranking, the online ranking and the 100% online and working adults rankings.