Careers
Related Skills
- Critical thinking skills
- General communications skills
- Legal research skills
- Legal writing skills
- Computer skills
- Interviewing and investigation skills
- Understanding the paralegal profession and ethical obligations
- Law office management skills
Being Successful in the Field
Most entry-level positions for legal studies majors are offered by private law firms, government agencies, or corporate law departments.
- Be willing to start in an entry-level job inorder to prepare for more advanced career opportunities.
- Focus your program of study on the legal specialty courses.
- Consider minoring in a foreign language or computer science if either of these disciplines is of interest.
- Gain experience through internship, law office employment, or volunteer activities.
- Talk with professionals in fields of interest to learn more about opportunities.
- Join paralegal organizations offering student memberships, such as the Central Illinois Paralegal Association or the Illinois Paralegal Association.
- Request the Legal Studies Certificate when you graduate because a certificate from an ABA-approved paralegal educational program is viewed favorably by employers.
Related Fields
Law
- Paralegal
- Legal assistant
- Legal information technology specialist
- Legal project assistant
- Litigation support specialist
Employers
- Private law firms
- Corporate law departments
- Legal aid organizations
- Prosecutor's Offices
- Public defender’s Office
- Government agencies
Strategies
- Complete an internship or other law-related employment before your senior year
- Acquire foreign language competency that would qualify you for bi-lingual positions
- Volunteer in law-related activities.
- Develop skills in commonly used computer software programs, such as Office, Excel, PowerPoint
- Supplement curriculum with foreign language, computer, and business courses.
- Develop excellent research, writing, analysis, and communication skills.
- Obtain leadership roles in campus organizations.
- Demonstrate excellent interpersonal skills.
Other Professions
- Administrative assistant
- Bar association administrator
- Closing clerk
- Compliance and enforcement inspector
- Compliance officer
- Conflicts research analyst
- Contract administrator
- Corporate trainer
- Court administrator
- Court clerk
- Court interpreter
- Creator of trial demonstrative exhibits
- Document reviewer
- Editor for a legal publisher
- Equal employment opportunity investigator
- Equal employment opportunity specialist
- Grant writer
- Insurance claims adjuster
- Investigator
- Judicial assistant
- Jury consultant
- Law librarian
- Law clerk
- Lease Administrator
- Legal analyst
- Legal research director
- Legal secretary
- Legal software representative
- Legislative analyst
- Loan closing officer
- Loan interviewer
- Mortgage processor
- Municipal clerk
- Occupational health and safety technician
- Paralegal instructor
- Real estate administrative assistant
- Risk management technician
- Technical writer
- Title examiner, abstractor and researcher
- Title insurance administrative assistant
- Trust officer
- Victim advocate for prosecutor’s office
Career Industry Liaison
Internship Coordinator