Paralegal Technology (A.A.S.)

The program prepares students to work as paralegals under attorney supervision, supporting legal research, writing, investigations, and document preparation.

Certification is not required, but graduates are eligible to sit for the North Carolina State Paralegal Certification Exam, which may strengthen employment opportunities.

The Paralegal Technology program at Central Piedmont works to equip students with the following core competencies and to achieve the following objectives.

Core competencies

• communication: the ability to read, write, speak, listen, and use nonverbal skills effectively with different audiences
• critical thinking: the ability to think using analysis, synthesis, evaluation, problem solving, judgment, and the creative process
• personal growth and responsibility: the ability to understand and manage self, to function effectively in social and professional environments, and to
• make reasoned judgments based on an understanding of the diversity of the world community
• information technology and quantitative literacy: the ability to locate, understand, evaluate, and synthesize, information, and data in a technological and data driven society

Educational objectives

• to provide our students with a well-rounded education, which includes general education courses (for our degree students), as well as legal specialty courses
• to prepare students to draft legal documents in at least three areas of law
• to provide students with substantive knowledge in at least five areas of law
• to instill in our students an appreciation for ethical and professional behavior
• to instill in our students an appreciation for the rules of grammar and punctuation
• to teach our students traditional research skills, as well as computer-based research skills

Administrative objectives

• to improve communication between the program and its students and part-time faculty by expanding the program’s website and encouraging students and part-time faculty to refer to it often
• to purchase legal software and incorporate instruction into relevant courses.
• to assist current students and graduates in obtaining legal employment and to develop and implement a plan that will allow the program to keep better track of its graduates
• to make courses more uniform, such that students learn the same things regardless of who the instructor is
• to develop policies and procedures that will assist the program’s part-time instructors in developing their syllabi and lesson plans, which will in turn ensure uniformity within the paralegal courses
• to develop formal (written) articulation agreements with four-year colleges

Legal Education Courses (LEX) Transfer Credit Policy: If you want to transfer to LEX courses, contact your faculty advisor. These requests are reviewed individually by the program chair. The number of transferable credits will depend upon whether your school is ABA approved. 

Maximum credits accepted: 

• 6 (lex) credit hours from non-ABA–approved schools
• 9 (lex) credit hours from ABA–approved programs 

Additionally, students must complete at least 50% of legal specialty courses at Central Piedmont. 

No credit is given for past paralegal work experience, but you can earn LEX elective credit through Work-Based Learning if you are working in a paralegal-related job.

You may be able to get help paying for school. Scholarships for paralegal students include: 

• Judith N. and James W. Allison Endowed Scholarship
• Judith and James Allison/Johnston Allison & Hord Endowed Scholarship
• Sonja T. Hutchins Memorial Endowed Scholarship
• Victoria Bowler Memorial Endowed Scholarship