- Fully asynchronous coursework
- Optional, weekly live sessions
- Three to five-hour weekly time commitment
- Taught by a legal expert with extensive litigation experience
- Finish in fourteen weeks, part-time
- No prior professional or academic legal experience required
Request Information
To learn more about the Online Paralegal Studies Certificate, fill out the form below to download a free brochure and receive a sample syllabus. You can also call 866-967-3486 to speak with an enrollment specialist.
Train for the career you want in as little as fourteen weeks
The online Paralegal Studies Certificate program from the University of Tennessee Center for Professional Education & Lifelong Learning combines quality, affordability, and flexibility to deliver a program that empowers students with the skills necessary to succeed as a paralegal.
With only three to five hours of time commitment each week, you can earn your paralegal certificate online on your schedule. No legal experience needed. Students who complete this program have an in-depth understanding of vital paralegal knowledge and responsibilities such as legal vocabulary, critical reading, thinking and writing, interviewing, investigation, legal research, law office administration, and commonly used technologies.
Curriculum that Builds the Skills Needed to Become a Paralegal
The course modules include a mix of short instructor-led video lessons, writing assignments, assigned reading, and discussions. Each lecture video will be five to seven minutes long with interactive elements that allow you to engage with the lessons you learn. Experiential learning activities include writing legal documents and citations.
“At the start of the course, each student receives a hypothetical client, and they prepare assignments in their client’s case as if they were litigating it through the stages of a trial. By the end of the course, each student will have writing samples they can put in a case file to show prospective employers.”
Dana Chavis, Founding Program Instructor, Paralegal Studies Certificate
Program Outcomes
After completing the course, students will be able to:
- Describe the role and limits of a paralegal
- Define legal terminology
- Engage in critical reading, thinking, and writing
- Identify legal ethics rules
- Apply interviewing and investigation techniques
- Recognize and understand legal authorities by citation
- Cite cases using the Bluebook format
- Conceptualize a case in order to organize, research, investigate, and help prepare your lawyer to advocate for the client
- Explain the American legal system and rules applicable to a particular case
- Recognize which questions to ask and be able to find out answers
What Can You Do with a Paralegal Studies Certificate?
Lawyers and their clients often work in high pressure environments. An online Paralegal Studies Certificate from UT prepares students to meet the demands required of law offices across the country. Through real-world coursework, students are introduced to the American legal system, civil litigation, criminal law and procedure, and the appeals process. They gain the structure to build a writing sample that gives them a competitive edge in the job market.
Paralegals have a median annual salary of $54,100, according to Lightcast. Here are some of the most common job titles someone with a paralegal certificate might hold:
$54,100
Corporate Paralegal
$53,900
Legal Assistant
$109,800
Legal Researcher
$51,100
Legal Secretary
About the University of Tennessee
For more than 225 years, Volunteers have been lighting the way for others, across Tennessee and throughout the world. UT Knoxville, which includes the UT Space Institute and the UT Institute of Agriculture, serves the state by educating its citizens, enhancing its culture, and making a difference in people’s lives through research and service.
As the preeminent research-based land-grant university in the state, UT embodies the spirit of excellence in teaching, research, scholarship, creative activity, outreach, and engagement.
UT Center for Professional Education & Lifelong Learning
The UT Center for Professional Education & Lifelong Learning offers a variety of non-credit programs and courses for professional certification, business management, and leisure and life enhancement. Each program was developed to ensure that you gain the necessary skills to excel in a professional environment. Additionally, these programs include access to an online community with interactive content and robust student services.
