Legal Support Services
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Types of Degrees Legal Support Services Majors Are Getting
The following table lists how many legal support services graduations there were in 2018-2019 for each degree level.
| Education Level | Number of Grads |
|---|---|
| Graduate Certificate | 363 |
| Master’s Degree | 120 |
What Legal Support Services Majors Need to Know
O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to legal support and asked them what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. The responses were rated on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being most important.
Knowledge Areas for Legal Support Majors
Legal Support majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
- Clerical - Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Skills for Legal Support Majors
The following list of skills has been highlighted as some of the most essential for careers related to legal support:
- Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
- Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Abilities for Legal Support Majors
Legal Support majors often go into careers where the following abilities are vital:
- Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
- Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
- Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
- Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
- Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
What Can You Do With a Legal Support Services Major?
People with a legal support degree often go into the following careers:
| Job Title | Job Growth Rate | Median Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Court Reporters | 3.6% | $57,150 |
| Legal Support Workers | 3.7% | $58,930 |
| Paralegals and Legal Assistants | 14.6% | $50,940 |
| Title Examiners, Abstractors, and Searchers | 4.3% | $47,130 |
Who Is Getting a Master’s Degree in Legal Support Services?
Racial-Ethnic Diversity
At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of legal support majors is as follows:
| Race/Ethnicity | Number of Grads |
|---|---|
| Asian | 2 |
| Black or African American | 32 |
| Hispanic or Latino | 16 |
| White | 52 |
| International Students | 3 |
| Other Races/Ethnicities | 15 |
Geographic Diversity
Legal Support appeals to people across the globe. About 2.5% of those with this major are international students. The most popular countries for students from outside the country are:
- Brazil
- Venezuela
- Japan
- China
- Saudi Arabia
How Much Do Legal Support Services Majors Make?
Master’s Degree Starting Salary
Data from the U.S. Department of Education shows that legal support services students who graduated in 2015-2017 with a master’s degree made a median starting salary of $46,700 per year. During this timeframe, most salaries fell between $42,800 (25th percentile) and $50,600 (75th percentile).
Note that some of these people may have jobs that are not directly related to a legal support degree.
Salaries According to BLS
Average salaries range from $51,380 to $62,390 (25th to 75th percentile) for careers related to legal support. This range includes all degree levels, so you may expect those with a more advanced degree to make more while those with less advanced degrees will typically make less.
To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.
Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Legal Support Services
Some careers associated with legal support require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. In general, the more advanced your degree the more career options will open up to you. However, there is significant time and money that needs to be invested into your education so weigh the pros and cons.
Find out what the typical degree level is for legal support careers below.
| Education Level | Percentage of Workers |
|---|---|
| High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED) | 15.2% |
| Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production) | 20.0% |
| Some College Courses | 12.0% |
| Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree) | 31.9% |
| Bachelor’s Degree | 20.1% |
| Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master. | 1.3% |
Online Legal Support Services Programs
In the 2018-2019 academic year, 714 schools offered some type of legal support services program. The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.
| Degree Level | Colleges Offering Programs | Colleges Offering Online Classes |
|---|---|---|
| Certificate (Less Than 1 Year) | 241 | 41 |
| Certificate (1-2 years) | 332 | 51 |
| Certificate (2-4 Years) | 19 | 3 |
| Associate’s Degree | 621 | 117 |
| Bachelor’s Degree | 29 | 6 |
| Post-Baccalaureate | 241 | 41 |
| Master’s Degree | 5 | 3 |
| Post-Master’s | 3 | 0 |
| Doctor’s Degree (Research) | 0 | 0 |
| Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice) | 0 | 0 |
| Doctor’s Degree (Other) | 0 | 0 |
Is a Degree in Legal Support Services Worth It?
The median salary for a legal support grad is $54,500 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.
This is 37% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $292,000 after 20 years!
Top Ranking Lists for Legal Support Services
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Majors Related to Legal Support Services
You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to legal support.
| Major | Number of Grads |
|---|---|
| Law | 34,727 |
| Legal Research | 8,962 |
| Legal Professions (Other) | 1,976 |
| Non-Professional General Legal Studies | 356 |
References
*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.
- College Factual
- College Scorecard
- National Center for Education Statistics
- O*NET Online
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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