Best Paralegal Associate Degree Programs (2027)

Dallas College offers the Paralegal A.A.S. (60 credit hours) through its El Centro campus. The first year covers legal research and writing, introduction to law and the legal professions, law office technology, civil litigation, contracts, wills, trusts and probate administration and family law; the second year adds torts and personal injury law, business organizations, real property and general education, and the advanced legal research and writing capstone must be taken in the last semester. Students choose six credit hours of paralegal electives from options such as employment law, bankruptcy, immigration law, criminal law and procedure, oil and gas law, intellectual property, advanced civil litigation and mediation, and students who already hold a paid legal position can earn cooperative education credit for that work. The Fall 2026 class schedule lists the paralegal courses in in-person, online and synchronous online sections.

Students must meet Texas Success Initiative (TSI) standards and course prerequisites, and Dallas College estimates two years to finish for full-time students. Paralegal students have access to an on-campus law library and two computer-assisted legal research systems.

The 65-credit Legal Studies: Paralegal associate degree, planned over four semesters, combines College 101, two short career courses, Accounting Principles and general education (English composition, oral/interpersonal communication, ethics, mathematical reasoning, psychology and American government) with legal specialty courses in Paralegal Intro/Legal Ethics, Law Office Administration, Estates and Probate, Legal Computer Applications, Contracts and Insurance Law, Legal Research, Family Law, Civil Litigation, Criminal Law and Procedures, Legal Aspects of Business Organizations and Legal Writing, a two-credit LS/Paralegal Career Experience, and two of four selective courses (Creditor/Debtor Relations, Administrative Law, Civil Trial Advocacy, and International Law and Immigration). All credits from NWTC's Law Office Administration certificate apply toward the degree. The 36-credit post-baccalaureate technical diploma, planned over two semesters, covers Paralegal Intro/Legal Ethics, Civil Litigation, Criminal Law and Procedures, Legal Research, Estates and Probate, Legal Computer Applications, Legal Aspects of Business Organizations and Legal Writing, two of the same selective courses, English Composition and Mathematical Reasoning. Most courses run in eight-week blocks, while Legal Research and Legal Writing run for a full semester.

Both credentials are offered in Green Bay, Wisconsin in day and evening formats, full or part time, and both appear on NWTC's list of online programs, which it describes as letting students complete all coursework virtually; at least 9 credits (135 hours of class attendance) of legal specialty courses must be taken in person or in a live online format that meets at a set time each week. The associate degree asks for high school, GED or HSED transcripts, and the technical diploma requires a bachelor's degree or higher from an accredited institution. Students need a C or better in Paralegal Intro/Legal Ethics to continue into the paralegal courses that build on it. NWTC notes that the paralegal program is a member of the American Association for Paralegal Education and that programs in its College of Business are accredited by the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs.

The 63-credit associate degree covers an introduction to the paralegal profession and legal ethics, Civil Litigation I and II, Legal Research, Legal Writing, legal computer applications and courses such as family law, debtor and creditor relations, insurance law, administration of estates, employment law, criminal law, real estate law and immigration law, along with general education. Students finish with a paralegal internship of at least 144 hours under the supervision of an attorney or other qualified professional, or a 144-hour field study of a legal specialty area. CVTC lists online delivery for both credentials; some coursework is taught live online, and students must take at least nine semester credits of legal specialty courses through synchronous instruction.

The 24-credit Post-Baccalaureate Technical Diploma is for students who have earned a bachelor's degree. It uses the same core legal courses (introduction and ethics, Civil Litigation I and II, Legal Research and Legal Writing), a choice between Administration of Estates and Criminal Law, a choice between Family Law and Immigration Law, and the internship or field study. Associate degree applicants are expected to have finished high school or earned an HSED or GED, both programs start in August, graduation requires a 2.0 cumulative GPA, and legal specialty transfer credit is accepted only from ABA-approved programs, with a C or better, within five years.

West Valley College in Saratoga, California offers a Paralegal Associate in Science degree (60 units) and a 35-unit Paralegal Certificate of Achievement. Both share 29 units of core courses (legal analysis, introduction to paralegal studies, introduction to American law, civil litigation procedures, pre-trial procedures, legal research and writing, writing for law practice, legal ethics and professional responsibility, law office management, Microsoft Word for the law office, computer-assisted legal research, legal technology, paralegal employment preparation and a paralegal internship) plus 6 units of electives such as corporate law, family law, probate, will drafting and estate planning, intellectual property, employment law, immigration law, elder law and patent administration. The internship places students in a law office doing paralegal-level tasks. At least 9 units of legal specialty courses must be taken in a synchronous or face-to-face format.

The certificate is a post-degree program for students who already hold an associate or higher degree; students without a degree earn the A.S., which adds general education to reach 60 units, and A.S. graduates also qualify for the certificate. The program is designed so a full-time student who already has a degree can finish in three semesters, though many students take three or more years because they work full-time or are raising a family. Up to 12 units of legal specialty courses can transfer from another ABA-approved paralegal program, and no more than 3 units of administration of justice courses may count as electives. Students with no law office experience are advised to start with Introduction to Paralegal Studies and Introduction to American Law, and an orientation is held before each fall and spring semester.

Both ABA-approved credentials share the same six legal specialty core courses (introduction to law and the legal profession, the paralegal profession, law office technology, Legal Research and Writing I and II, and a law capstone or paralegal internship) plus a six-course concentration drawn from the Transactional Law, Litigation, Immigration Law or Legal Specialist career certificates. The Associate in Applied Science adds business law, business communication, English composition and general education for a total of 94.5 quarter credit hours, and the catalog lists it at the South Omaha Campus and online. The Paralegal Accelerated Certificate totals 54 quarter credit hours and is listed as online.

The accelerated certificate is only for students who have already completed a bachelor's degree, who must submit a transcript to the MCC Records Office. Associate degree students complete formal admission to the paralegal program by earning a C or better in LAWS 1101. In either program, at least 13.5 quarter credit hours of legal specialty courses must be taken through synchronous instruction, and no more than 9 quarter credit hours of legal specialty credit can transfer in, only from an ABA-approved program. MCC notes that its separate Legal Professional Certificate of Achievement is not an ABA-approved option.

Both credentials share a 40-credit core: Legal Ethics and Professionalism, Civil Procedures I and II, Law Office Technology, a paralegal orientation course, Legal Research and Writing I and II, Introduction to Law, and an internship with an internship seminar. The 95-credit AAS adds 20 credits of legal electives (one must meet the Diversity and Globalism requirement), 15 credits of general education and 20 credits of related instruction in communication, computation and human relations; the 55-credit Paralegal Plus certificate adds 15 credits of legal electives. Electives include torts, criminal law and procedure, immigration law, civil rights, estate planning and probate, family law, intellectual property and employment law. Highline says both programs can be completed remotely without coming to campus, with at least 13 quarter hours of legal specialty courses taken live on Zoom or in a classroom.

The AAS requires a high school diploma or equivalent and takes two years for full-time students (12 credits or more per quarter). The Paralegal Plus certificate is open to graduates of accredited bachelor's programs in any discipline, or to students enrolled in a bachelor's program who finish it before completing the certificate, and Highline describes it as a one-year program. Students need at least a 2.0 in each legal course, no more than 15 quarter credits of legal specialty coursework can transfer in, and full-time Legal Studies faculty are licensed attorneys in Washington.