Specifically law firms in the philadelphia, lancaster, harrisburg region?

I have worked as a legal assistant for a small firm for about 3 years and I have never heard of any firm doing that. Of course that is not to say that it doesn't happen, but most firms don't want to train their paralegals, or assistants. Its just too much to learn and can't really be done in a short period of time. Additionally, law firms or lawyers in general usually aren't very generous with their money. If this type of career is something you are really interested in, then I would suggest applying for student loan or government grant and go to school on your own for it. There are a lot of colleges online that offer a paralegal class and allow you to apply for government and student loans. Try Florida Metropolitan University Online. I attend that college online, it is legit, very good school, and I have had a lot of classmates that were attending for paralegal. Law firms a always hiring people, so there will be plenty of opportunities out there once you are finished with school. Who know, maybe a firm will go ahead and hire you if they know you are already in the process of becoming a paralegal. Hope this helps.

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I wasn't sure which direction to head in after graduating High School June 2008. So I attended Community College and now decided to head in the law direction. I want to become a Paralegal then further my education (to maybe a Lawyer) after that. I'm finding it hard to locate a school that offers a Bachelor's degree in paralegal studies. Plus my school isn't' really popular for that field so my major is 'Office Administration with a concentration in Legal' So if any of you know of a school/ site that'll be helpful i'd appreciate it.

Thanks

P.S: Hope I didn't ramble to much =P
BTW, I don't care where the school is located, as long as it's in the US

Here's the link to find all American Bar Association (ABA) accredited schools in the US, just click on a state:

http://www.abanet.org/legalservices/paralegals/directory/home.html

You want to attend a school that is ABA accredited. If you don't, that's like a doctor attending a medical school that isn't licensed…not a good idea!!! Really, you do not need a BA to become a paralegal. A 2 year AA (or AS) degree is sufficient. Make sure you get one from a school where the credits will be transferable to a university so that when you want to complete your BA you can do so. But if you really want a BA in paralegal studies then by all means go for it!

Good luck to you!

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I went to the community college in Houston and got an associate two year degree in legal assistant technology.
I think that is better than the very expensive 6 week or 2 month classes at "business schools".
At the community college, you take full credit college courses in all areas of the law. I had already been to college so already had the basic courses in English and speech etc.
It was a good way for me to go. I went at night when my husband got home to take care of the kids and was able to work part time too and some time, not at all.
I wound up divorced and this paralegal degree is allowing me to live pretty well on my own.
Good luck to you.

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I want to run my own consulting business as far as providing information to clients regarding wills/trust, bankruptcy, divorce/child custody modifications etc. I want to be able to do more than a paralegal (as far as being able to give more advice and be a little more credible as far as the law field goes,) but less than a lawyer(kind of like what a physician assistant is to a Doctor), if possible I would like to avoid law school. Would a Masters degree in Paralegal studies be a good option for me. How about a masters in Pre-law? If so what are some good online schools to complete my graduate studies? Please give me some good advice, I have been trying to figure this out for sometime now and am still really confused.

Thank you for your time!

It's illegal in most states to falsely hold yourself out as an attorney and/or unauthorized practice of law, which is the risk you run if you provide legal information of the kind you mention in your question.

If time/work schedule is an issue, how about an online law school, like Concord, or a part-time program at night? There are also some states that will allow you to take the bar without having attended law school, but they still usually require an apprenticeship at a law firm and self-study.

Otherwise, I believe you could still work on wills/trusts, bankruptcy, etc. for form-filling and other technical aspects (i.e. a paralegal's work), but not give legal advice to clients.

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I've been researching online for a few hours now and I can't find to many affordable online bachelor degree programs. I would like to earn one in Legal Studies (or paralegal). Thus far the cheapest school I've found is Western Governors University, however they don't offer a B.S. in Paralegal (or Legal) Studies.

Can someone direct me to an accredited online (or correspondence) school that offers affordable bachelor's degrees?

Check out http://distancelearningdegree.com/
for information on accreditation, since you will want your degree from an accredited university.

Many universites, including classroom based ones, don't offer paralegal degrees; they offer paralegal certificates.

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Please I read and read things in websites but I want someone to tell me what I have to do? Like, what should I do go to college for my bachelors or community college? Please anyone and if you're a paralegal it would be great to guide me step by step thanks!!
also would it be a plus to be bilingual when pursuing to be a paralegal? I know very good my Spanish and I'm studying French so is that a plus?

You can get an Associate's Degree in Paralegal Studies at a community college. There are many community colleges with paralegal programs that are ABA-approved.

While you are doing this, you should get a job at a law firm (any job) so that you have an "in" at a law firm once you graduate.

Once you have your Associate's Degree, you can transfer to a university to get a Bachelor's Degree in Paralegal Studies. See if you can do night classes for a while, so you can still work at a law firm job (hopefully you will have gotten the law firm job while in community college (again at night)).

Here is a list of ABA-approved programs in the US:

http://www.abanet.org/legalservices/paralegals/directory/home.html

Bilingual is helpful, especially if the job you get has a client-base which speaks another language. In CA, I have seen many postings preferring bilingual abilities in Spanish. So, yes, it is definitely a plus.

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