Non-Professional Legal Studies

Types of Degrees Non-Professional Legal Studies Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many non-professional general legal studies graduations there were in 2020-2021 for each degree level.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Master’s Degree	418
Graduate Certificate	23
Doctor’s Degree	3

What Non-Professional Legal Studies Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, non-professional general legal studies majors were asked to rate what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important in their occupations. These answers were weighted on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the most important.

Knowledge Areas for Non-Professional General Legal Studies Majors

Non-Professional General Legal Studies majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

• Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.

Skills for Non-Professional General Legal Studies Majors

The following list of skills has been highlighted as some of the most essential for careers related to non-professional general legal studies:

• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• 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.
• Learning Strategies - Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Instructing - Teaching others how to do something.

Abilities for Non-Professional General Legal Studies Majors

As a non-professional general legal studies major, you will find yourself needing the following abilities:

• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
• Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.

What Can You Do With a Non-Professional Legal Studies Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with non-professional general legal studies:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Law Professors	12.3%	$111,140

Who Is Getting a Master’s Degree in Non-Professional Legal Studies?

This major is dominated by women with about 69% of recent graduates being female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of non-professional general legal studies majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	21
Black or African American	75
Hispanic or Latino	62
White	187
International Students	18
Other Races/Ethnicities	55

Geographic Diversity

Non-Professional General Legal Studies appeals to people across the globe. About 4.3% of those with this major are international students. The most popular countries for students from outside the country are:

• China
• Canada
• South Korea
• Saudi Arabia
• France

How Much Do Non-Professional Legal Studies Majors Make?

Master’s Degree Starting Salary

The U.S. Department of Education found that students who graduated in 2017-2019 with a master’s degree in non-professional general legal studies made a median starting salary of $45,199 per year. During this timeframe, most salaries fell between $45,199 (25th percentile) and $45,199 (75th percentile).

One thing to note here is that not all of these people may be working in careers related to non-professional general legal studies.

Salaries According to BLS

The median salary for someone in a career related to non-professional general legal studies is $130,710. This median refers to all degree levels, so the salary for a person with just a bachelor’s degree may be a little less and the one for a person with an advanced degree may be a little more.

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 Non-Professional Legal Studies

Some careers associated with non-professional general legal studies 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.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to non-professional general legal studies have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	1.1%
Master’s Degree	15.4%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level.	2.1%
First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession.	46.2%
Doctoral Degree	35.3%

Online Non-Professional Legal Studies Programs

In 2020-2021, 263 schools offered a non-professional general legal studies program of some type. 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)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	9	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	75	7
Bachelor’s Degree	9	1
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	26	4
Post-Master’s	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	1	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	1	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Non-Professional Legal Studies Worth It?

The median salary for a non-professional general legal studies grad is $130,710 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 228% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $1,816,200 after 20 years!

Majors Related to Non-Professional Legal Studies

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to non-professional general legal studies.

Major	Number of Grads
Law	36,216
Legal Research	6,659
Legal Professions (Other)	1,424
Legal Support Services	446

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
• Image Credit: By The wub under License

More about our data sources and methodologies.