Paralegal

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Total Degrees
Awarded in 2019

9,972

declining 7.62%

Median In-State
Public Tuition

$4,916

declining 7.38%

Median Out-of-State
Private Tuition

$27,400

growing 3.76%

Average Wage

$69,694

declining 0.796%

People in Workforce

92,444

growing 2.61%

Average Employee Age

42.4

growing 1.98%

About

The locations with the highest concentration of Paralegal degree recipients are Indianapolis city (balance), IN, Houston, TX, and Lynchburg, VA. The locations with a relatively high number of Paralegal degree recipients are Lake Mary, FL, Chalmette, LA, and Altamonte Springs, FL. The most common degree awarded to students studying Paralegal is a associates degree.

Legal Legal Support Services

Institutions

Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Paralegal and the types of students that study this field. Liberty University awards the most degrees in Paralegal in the US, but Center for Advanced Legal Studies and National Paralegal College have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Paralegal.

Tuition costs for Paralegal majors are, on average, $4,916 for in-state public colleges, and $27,400 for out of state private colleges.

The most common sector, by number of institutions, that offers Paralegal programs are Public, 2-year institutions (300 total). The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded, is Public, 2-year (5,267 completions).

Institutions

Institution with the Most Degrees Awarded in Paralegal

The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded in Paralegal, is Public, 2-year (5,267 completions).

The following chart shows the share of universities that offer Paralegal programs, by the total number of completions, colored and grouped by their sector.

Tuition Costs for Common Institutions

$4,916

Median In-State Public

$27,400

Median Out of State Private

Liberty University has the most Paralegal degree recipients, with 218 degrees awarded in 2019.

The following bar chart shows the state tuition for the top 5 institutions with the most degrees awarded in Paralegal.

Specialized Colleges

Highest Concentration Institution

Out of all institutions that offer Paralegal programs and have at least 5 graduates in those programs, Center for Advanced Legal Studies has the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Paralegal, with 100%.

Degrees Awarded by County

Counties with the Most Degrees Awarded in Paralegal

This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest number of degrees awarded in Paralegal by year.

Growth in Awarded Degrees

Counties with the Fastest Growing Number of Degrees Awarded

This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest growth in degrees awarded for Paralegal.

Employment

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Legal graduates and on wages and locations for those in the field.

The average salary for Legal majors is $69,694 and the most common occupations are Paralegals & legal assistants, Lawyers, & judges, magistrates, & other judicial workers, and Other managers.

The industry that employs the most Legal majors is Legal services, though the highest paying industry, by average wage, is Scientific research & development services.

Wages

Yearly Income for Common Jobs

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Paralegal is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

$69,694

Average Wage in Workforce

± $4,737

0.796%

1 Year Growth

± 11.2%

The average salary for Legal majors is $69,694 and the most common occupations are Paralegals & legal assistants, Lawyers, & judges, magistrates, & other judicial workers, and Other managers.

This chart shows the average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Legal majors.

Highest Paying Locations

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Paralegal is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

Highest Paying Pumas

This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States colored by the average salary of Legal majors.

Note that the census collects information tied to where people live, not where they work. It is possible that Legal majors live and work in the same place, but it is also possible that they live and work in two different places.

Occupations

Most Common

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Paralegal is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

The most common occupations Legal majors, by number of employees, are Paralegals & legal assistants, Lawyers, & judges, magistrates, & other judicial workers, and Other managers.

Most Specialized

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Paralegal is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

Compared to other majors, there are an unusually high number of Legal majors working as Paralegals & legal assistants, Legal secretaries and administrative assistants, and Legal support workers, all other.

Highest Paid

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Paralegal is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

The highest paid occupations by median income for Legal majors are Sales representatives, wholesale & manufacturing, Sales managers, and Firstline supervisors of nonretail sales workers.

Occupations by Share

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Paralegal is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

92,444

2019 Workforce

± 7,462

2.61%

1 Year Growth

± 11.2%

The number of Legal graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 2.61%, from 90,094 in 2018 to 92,444 in 2019.

The largest single share of Legal graduates go on to work as Paralegals & legal assistants (14.9%). This chart shows the various jobs filled by those with a major in Legal by share of the total number of graduates.

Industries

Most Common

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Paralegal is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

The most common industries that employ Legal majors, by number of employees, are Legal services, Justice, public order, & safety activities , and Elementary & secondary schools.

Highest Paid

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Paralegal is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

The highest paying industries of Legal majors, by average wage, are Scientific research & development services, Electronic component & product manufacturing, n.e.c. , and Offices of physicians.

Industries by Share

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Paralegal is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

92,444

2019 Workforce

± 7,462

2.61%

1 Year Growth

± 11.2%

The number of Legal graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 2.61%, from 90,094 in 2018 to 92,444 in 2019.

The industry which employs the most Legal graduates by share is Legal services, followed by Justice, public order, & safety activities . This visualization shows the industries that hire those who major in Legal.

Specialty Locations

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Paralegal is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

PUMAS with a relatively high number of Legal majors

This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States where there are a relatively high population of Legal majors.

Diversity

Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Legal in the United States.

The average age of a person in the workforce with a degree in Legal is 42.4.

The most common degree type these workers hold is a Associates Degree. Female employees are more likely to hold Legal degrees, and White students are the most common race/ethnicty group awarded degrees in Legal (5,324 students).

Workforce Age

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Paralegal is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

42.4

Average Age in 2019

± 0.968 Years

1.98%

1 Year Change

± 3.27%

This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Legal. The most common ages of employees with this major are 33 and 32 years old, which represent 4.63% and 4.6% of the population, respectively.

Degrees Awarded

The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Paralegal are Associates Degree, 1 to 2 Year Postsecondary Certificate, and < 1 Year Postsecondary Certificate.

Workforce Degrees

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Paralegal is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

The most common degree types held by the working population in Legal are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Professional degree.

Gender Imbalance for Common Institutions

Female (83.4%)

Most Common Gender with a Degree in this Field

This chart shows the granted degrees by gender at the 5 institutions that graduate the most students in Paralegal.

Race & Ethnicity by Degrees Awarded

Most Common Race or Ethnicity

White
5,324 degrees awarded
Hispanic or Latino
1,830 degrees awarded
Black or African American
1,521 degrees awarded

This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Paralegal for each race & ethnicity. White students earned the largest share of the degrees with this major.

Race & Ethnicity by Gender

Most Common Race/Ethnicity and Gender Combination

White Female
2,214 degrees awarded
Hispanic or Latino Female
920 degrees awarded
Black or African American Female
614 degrees awarded

This chart illustrates the differences by gender for each race & ethnicity of Associates Degree recipients in Paralegal. White Female students, who earn most of the degrees in this field, are the most common combination of race/ethnicity and gender.

Global Diversity

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Paralegal is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

Most Common Countries of Origin

Ukraine
709 degree recipients
Canada
613 degree recipients
Korea
535 degree recipients

High Relative Number of Students

Ukraine
6.99 times more than expected
Canada
2.87 times more than expected
Korea
1.88 times more than expected

There are a relatively high number of people that were born in Ukraine that hold Legal degrees (6.99 times more than expected), and the most common country of origin by total numbers for non-US students earning a degree in this field is Ukraine (709 degree recipients).

Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Paralegal field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Paralegal majors need many skills, but most especially Reading Comprehension. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Paralegal majors need more than the average amount of Writing, Active Listening, and Reading Comprehension.

These two visualizations, one a radial chart and one a bar chart, show the same information, a rating of how necessary the following skills are for Paralegal majors. Toggle between "value" and "RCA" to see the absolute rating of that skill (value) and the revealed comparative advantage (RCA), or how much greater or lesser that skill's rating is than the average. The longer the bar or the closer the line comes to the circumference of the circle, the more important that skill is. The importance of Writing is very distinctive for majors, but the Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, and Writing are the three most important skills for people in the field.