How to Turn Your Associate Degree into a Career
by Kate Robb
Career School Directory Columnist
November 05, 2007
On the University of Montana campus, there is no shortage of work-study students plowing through their classes to earn a bachelor's degree. But narrow the field to students who already have professional experience, and who know exactly where they want to be in five years, and you're looking at a much smaller group of people. With an associate's degree already in hand, paralegal Velvet Young is already ahead of the game. She has worked in law firms for the last few years and is currently pursuing a bachelor's degree and planning on attending law school. Here, she tells us about working as a paralegal.
CSD: Tell me about the different jobs you've held in the legal field.
I got my associate's degree to be a legal secretary in 2003, and started working at a law firm as a paralegal for three years before going back to school. Some people use the term legal secretary and some call it a paralegal--some people differentiate between the two and some people don't. The places I've worked, paralegals bill for their time, but legal secretaries don't. Often law firms that differentiate save the more administrative tasks for the legal secretaries.
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CSD: Do you think you would have been successful in your job without your degree?
Well, a lot of people do it, but one thing I know that makes a difference is that if you have a degree--but the other person applying for the job doesn't--they're going to want you. In my office there was actually another woman who had been a paralegal for over 10 years and I had just gotten into my second year but they wanted me as the paralegal because they can say I have the degree.
CSD: Do you think it makes you more credible as an employee?
Sure. I'm sure she knew as much as me, but it probably took her a lot longer to figure it out.
CSD: What kinds of classes did you take?
I learned a lot about terminology and procedures in a lot of different areas of law. There were classes in all areas of law such as real estate, estate, probate, litigation, criminal law, legal research, and writing every semester. Really, we learned not what the laws are, but how to find them.
CSD: What do you like the best about working in this field?
I like trying to help people if I can--it's always hard when you can't. But also, I'm good at all the paperwork procedures, knowledge--I loved that kind of stuff. And the main skills that are good to have as a paralegal are the same ones you need as an attorney too--you need to be able to research, be a good writer, and be a good communicator.
Source
Learn more about Paralegal Degrees and Programs.
About the Author
Kate Robb is a freelance writer and a university professor.
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