Here are some tips for selecting schools, based on an analysis comparing each school to all others across dozens of factors:
Schools Concentrating On Paralegals And Legal Assistants
- Focus: For schools with a focus on this career area, look at Tri-C, Columbus State Community College, University of Northwestern Ohio, and Stautzenberger College-Brecksville.
Fastest Response From Schools
- Request Info: For the fastest information for prospective students, look at the Spotlight schools on this page.
Student Body
- Part-Time: For schools emphasizing part-time studies, consider ETI, Chancellor University, Kent State, and College of Mount St. Joseph.
- Female: For schools particularly welcoming to female students, consider Stautzenberger College-Brecksville, Ursuline College, and Stautzenberger College.
- Diverse: For a diverse student body, consider Chancellor University, University of Northwestern Ohio, Tri-C, and Cincinnati State.
- Adult Learners: For lots of adult learners, consider Ursuline College, Marion Tech, Tri-C, and Stautzenberger College.
School Setting
- Out of State: For geographic diversity, take note of University of Northwestern Ohio, Tiffin University, Lake Erie College, and College of Mount St. Joseph.
- Dorms: For a residential campus environment, take note of Lake Erie College, Tiffin University, Kent State, and University of Northwestern Ohio.
Excellence
- SAT: For students with high SAT scores, look at University of Cincinnati.
- % Accepted: For selective institutions, look at Lake Erie College.
- Class Size: For small class sizes, look at Ursuline College, College of Mount St. Joseph, Lake Erie College, and University of Cincinnati.
Student/Alumnus Reviews of Schools for This Career and State
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Bryant And Stratton • Cleveland, OH
Studying Paralegal Studies (completion in 2009)
• 5/6/2011
"Very satisfied. The school was able to get me a job after I got my degree. So therefore, I am very happy with the placement services."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | no | I would recommend students go to an accredited university. I would also add that the school was expensive. Money spent at this school should be put toward attending a major university. |
| Program Reputation | 4 | There are not that many programs in Cleveland, unless you want to go to law school. |
| Program Quality | 5 | Teachers were not regular tenured professors. They hired people to come in and teach classes. |
| Instruction | 5 | The teachers have plenty real world experience. They do not, however, have teaching experience. |
| How Difficult | 5 | Since the teachers were not full-time faculty, they're tests were not too difficult. Additionally, we would rate them at the end and they wanted to get a high rating to get invited back. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | My studies were primarily focused on the book given at the beginning of the course. Not too many of the teachers focus on hands-on training | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 6 | Many of the classes are at night. The reason being is that teachers teach at night because they work full time jobs elsewhere. |
| Academic Facilities | 6 | The facilities are adequate. The school is designed to streamline one's education, so the facilities aren't as great as those of a major university. |
| Social Life | 5 | It was fine, but still expensive. Many of the students ran the gamut from serious to just plain idiotic! |
| Placement Services | 7 | This is where they shine. They are very connected to the community. |
| Alumni Network | 3 | It is a school that does not focus on alumni. The alumni network is not strong. |
Sinclair Community College • Dayton, OH
Studying Legal Assisting (completion in 1997)
• 7/2/2011
"I am very satisfied with Sinclair. I respect their reputation and I walked away feeling like a paid for a good education. The knowledge that I learned also helped me excel in my internship and in my first Paralegal job."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | Once again, reputation is a big factor regarding making recommendations. Sinclair has a great reputation. Also, being affordable is a key factor to making a recommendation. Sinclair is very affordable. |
| Program Reputation | 10 | Sinclair is a very well respected and large community college. Their programs, generally speaking, outrank the majority of similar programs offered at other colleges. Sinclair has a great reputation and credits are transferrable to just about any other university. |
| Program Quality | 8 | The program provided a lot of training in a variety of aspects of legal assisting, includeing research and writing, case review and analysis, wills and trusts, and divorces. |
| Instruction | 8 | The instructors were staff members who also work or have worked in the field. |
| How Difficult | 7 | The program was very detailed and required a lot of focus and attention. There were a lot of assignments daily. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | The school provided a great internship where I gained a lot of hands on experience after 2 years of book driven training. The school also provided real life situations/problems to be worked out as part of training. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 8 | The school provided enough morning, afternoon, evening, and weekend classes for scheduling not to be a problem for me. They also offer summer sessions and some online sessions. |
| Academic Facilities | 8 | Research and writing are major parts of the Legal Assisting program. The college provided access to various law materials including a large selection of case law books and statutes. |
| Social Life | 8 | I am somewhat social in nature, however, I do have a homebody side as well. The school had great school spirit events and social events. Sports did not play a part in the community college, however, they did have social organizations as well as academic/scholar organizations. |
| Placement Services | 3 | I don't have an experience with the job placement at Sinclair, because I never used that service. Nor was I ever approached regarding using that service. The service, in my opinion, was not discussed with students as much as it should have been. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | Sinclair is a community college and alumni support is, in my opinion, secondary to alumni University support. However, the school has recently chose to advertise with the success stories of past graduates. |
Cuyahoga Community College • Cleveland, OH
Studying Paralegal (completion in 2008)
• 8/9/2011
"It was okay and I would go back. The tuition was very affordable."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | I would recommend this to others only if they had zero knowledge about the paralegal field. If they did already, let's say from real life working situations, I would not. They only teach basic knowledge, something that can be learned at the entry level an |
| Program Reputation | 10 | I think they have a good reputation for the path I was on, at least with their paralegal studies program. I would recommend it, however, only to people who don't know a thing about that line of work. |
| Program Quality | 5 | I feel that some of the things I learned in school were common sense or at least things that I could've been trained on in an entry level position rather than paying to go to school for. I was very disappointed with that, although it made for an easier ti |
| Instruction | 8 | Well, the curriculum was very relevant to what I do now. Everything I learned there I use on a daily basis. |
| How Difficult | 1 | Most of what I learned in school I knew how to do already, from regular job experience. I found school very easy to get through, which was fine since I was only in search of my certification. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | Oh, it was definitely all book study. Laws, formatting, research. I received zero hands on experience (with the exception of my real job that I was working during my schooling - on my own accord). | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 10 | Extremely flexible courses - I loved it when I was attending. You can maintain a full time job while attending school at night, for example. |
| Academic Facilities | 10 | Rated 10 for everything with the exception of the accessibility of the professors. They are there and then gone, with no interest in speaking with the student body. |
| Social Life | 1 | I have to rate this as extremely poor because it is a community college with not much going on in terms of social activities. While they may have events going on, I was never very interested in them so I never looked into it. |
| Placement Services | 1 | None exist. I cannot even write two sentences about it. |
| Alumni Network | 1 | I have not utilized any support network with my school. I was not aware that any existed. It is a community college so they might not have one available. |
Cincinnati State Technical And Community College • Cincinnati, OH
Studying Paralegal (completion in 2009)
• 9/11/2011
"I am very satisfied with my school. It was cheap and allowed me to get a higher education. I will go back there if I ever want a career change."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | Yes, I would recommend my school. The school is very accommodating when it comes to meeting the needs of students. They will do everything possible to help students achieve their degrees. |
| Program Reputation | 7 | I think my school has a decent reputation. You can go there and get a good education and the price is still reasonable. |
| Program Quality | 7 | The school is good if you're looking for a cheap education. If you're looking for more credibility, I would recommend a degree from a university. |
| Instruction | 8 | The curriculum was very relevant to my career path. I use stuff that I learned in school every day. There wasn't anything that I learned that I haven't referred back to at least once. |
| How Difficult | 7 | I feel like the program was quite simple. The information was not difficult but you still have to take the time out to study for tests. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | There is a good mix of hands-on learning and book learning. A lot of my instructors would give a lecture and provide some type of hands-on activity to further teach the information described in the lecture. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 8 | The class schedule flexibility was awesome. They have night classes and day classes. They also have quite a bit of classes that are offered online. There is no problem getting classes that will fit your life's schedule. |
| Academic Facilities | 9 | There were a lot of tutoring places within the school where you could go for help on different subjects. There is also a great deal of information and resources offered in the school library. |
| Social Life | 6 | There are a few organizations within the school. Since the school is so small the events aren't really advertised as much. |
| Placement Services | 8 | One thing I really liked about my school was the job placement. Once you finished your education they worked very hard to help you find an entry level position within your field. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | The alumni from my school isn't very good. Since this is a community college most people begin their education here and move on to a bigger college to finish their degrees. |
Washington State Community College • Marietta, OH
Studying Office Administrative Services Technology (completion in 2004)
• 10/27/2011
"I have no complaints about the academics or schedule. My only complaint was not being able to reach the one professor when I needed to."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | I believe that I learned a lot in my coursework that helps me to do my job every day. Also, after graduating, Washington State added a legal assistant program. I think anyone wanting to become a legal assistant would greatly benefit from the classes I took. |
| Program Reputation | 8 | The OAST program I was in has a good reputation, because most of the graduates' employers are very satisfied with their work. However, there are always a couple who don't leave such a good impression. |
| Program Quality | 8 | While I learned a lot in some of my classes, I did not learn much in a couple of them. I feel that I could have skipped them and saved some time. |
| Instruction | 9 | My instructors were always very knowledgeable. However, I did not learn much of anything in a couple of my classes. |
| How Difficult | 2 | I never had a hard time understanding my work or getting everything done. Using Microsoft Access was a little difficult for me but only because I found it boring (not much creativity involved). |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | Because most of work was done on computers, everything was hands on. We did need the book to get our assignments and guide us though the steps, though. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 9 | I was able to work my part time job and take classes during the day and evening and online. I never had a problem getting all the classes in I needed to and was never rushed to get from one place to another. |
| Academic Facilities | 9 | I had no complaints the one or two times I visited the school library. Labs were always open, there was plenty of classroom space, and I had no problem meeting with my academic advisor. I did have trouble reaching one of my professors, and I never inquired about a tutor or study group; so I do not know about that. |
| Social Life | 2 | There were no sports or school-wide social events. We did participate in a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society, and the OAST program held a banquet before graduation. |
| Placement Services | 5 | There was a web site where we could log in and view some of the job openings posted by local businesses. However, there was no one-on-one job placement help or anything like that. |
| Alumni Network | 1 | We do nothing with alumni. About once a year I receive a card in the mail about making donations to the school. That's it. |
Ohio State • Columbus, OH
Studying English (completion in 2009)
• 10/29/2011
"My school was great for instruction. There were many options to choose from to always be satisfied."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | maybe | I would recommend my school but I would not recommend my job. |
| Program Reputation | 6 | I don't think the program was anything special. I think it was a regular English program. |
| Program Quality | 7 | I learned so much at school. I learned how to support any argument regardless of my belief. |
| Instruction | 7 | I had a variety of courses. I had to leave my comfort zone for my learning. |
| How Difficult | 6 | I easily handled each assignment. Our paper requirements were very short. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | I read a lot of books in the English program, that's pretty standard. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 8 | There were traditional classes offered very early to very late in the day six days a week. There were also many online options. |
| Academic Facilities | 6 | The were plenty of highly qualified professors. The advising staff did not have much specialized knowledge. |
| Social Life | 9 | The school functioned as a family. The campus is large but you always knew someone in class. |
| Placement Services | 6 | The job placement office had plenty of resources. However, the resources were vague and broad. |
| Alumni Network | 6 | I know there are several alumni groups. You can find alumni worldwide. |
Lakeland Community College • Kirtland, OH
Studying Applied Business (completion in 2011)
• 1/24/2012
"I am very satisfied with the education I have earned at Lakeland. The only downside is their financial aid office, which can at times hinder your eligibility for aid."
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | yes | I would recommend my school to others pursuing any type of career. It is very affordable and offers flexible options to students of all ages. |
| Program Reputation | 7 | Lakeland all around is a very good school. I recommend it as it is very affordable and convenient. |
| Program Quality | 8 | Lakeland overall is a very good school. They offer many different career paths. |
| Instruction | 7 | I took online classes and learned a great deal. I find it easier and more convenient to learn from online instructors. |
| How Difficult | 5 | Some of the classes I took were easy, but some of the others, including Statistics, were a little more difficult. With online classes, you can work around your busy schedule if you work full time. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | I prefer hands on vs. book learning. I find that I lose focus when just reading out of a book and can learn faster if I have the hands on experience. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 9 | A lot of the classes are offered online. I know that there are some areas in which a student must go on campus to take a class or test, but I do recommend their online courses. |
| Academic Facilities | 7 | Lakeland has a library, computer lab, and several tutoring resources available. I only utilized the testing center for classes that required me to go on campus to take a test. |
| Social Life | 7 | Lakeland does have a great athletics program and student social system. Because of the online classes I have taken, I did not get to experience the full social system. |
| Placement Services | 6 | Lakeland offers a career website for their students and alumni. I have used it previously. |
| Alumni Network | 5 | I don't really communicate with the alumni network. Lakeland does provide support networks in other aspects, though. |
Oberlin College • Oberlin, OH
Studying Music (completion in 2009)
• 2/19/2012
"I enjoyed it and learned a lot. I wouldn't say it specifically prepared me for my career, but that's my own fault!"
Ratings are on a 1-10 scale
| Characteristic | Rating | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Would Recommend? | no | If you're going to be a legal assistant, go to a cheaper school! You don't need a fancy liberal arts degree for this, and frankly I don't think you really need a 4-year degree; 2 years would be fine. |
| Program Reputation | 10 | My school is known as one of the best music schools in the country. Doesn't have much to do with my current job, though! |
| Program Quality | 8 | My school had a great music program. It has a good reputation. |
| Instruction | 6 | It was a good music program, but on the other hand there wasn't really any career preparation since I'm working in a totally different field now. |
| How Difficult | 4 | There was a decent volume of work, but it was easier than science coursework, for example. The academic challenge was fairly low. |
| Hands-On vs. Bookish | It was a good mix. There were a lot of lectures but there were also lots of practicums when appropriate. | |
| Schedule Flexibility | 3 | There are no weekend or online classes and few evening classes. |
| Academic Facilities | 10 | The academic resources are fantastic. We had amazing libraries for a school of our size, professors are known for being accessible, and tutoring is easy to arrange. |
| Social Life | 8 | I had a good social experience and I liked my classmates, and we definitely had school spirit! I don't think we had a big athletics or party scene, though, but I wasn't interested in those anyway. |
| Placement Services | 6 | The Career Services Office is helpful if you know what kind of job you want. If you don't, I don't know how much they can offer. |
| Alumni Network | 7 | I still get emails from the Alumni Association. You can also contact individual alums for leads. |
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