A top school in Texas recently inducted thirteen paralegal students into Lambda Epsilon Chi, the school’s paralegal honor society. The induction was awarded based on the students’ academic achievement, the requirements for which included keeping a minimum grade point average of 3.5 in their paralegal courses and a minimum of 3.2 in their general courses. The students were also required to maintain active membership in the college’s paralegal club. Additionally, the students needed to complete 30 credit hours of legal specialty coursework as well as 9 credit hours of general education.
The school’s paralegal program is ranked in the top 100 programs in the country and has long been approved by the American Bar Association. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board has also awarded the school with exemplary status. The keynote speaker at the induction ceremony, Sylvia Quarles, is a graduate of the paralegal program and also a member of the LEX honor society. In her speech she spoke about perseverance and commitment in pursuing a degree as challenging as that of a paralegal.
The chairman of the school’s North Campus business department, Ernest Davila, also spoke to the students and attendees. He commented that the paralegal profession is a relatively lucrative one and that the demand for paralegals across the United States is as strong as it has ever been and is only getting stronger.
The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics lists the median paralegal salary at approximately $22 per hour, which equates to about $46,600. The Bureau expects that in the ten years between 2010 and 2020 the profession will grow by between 16 and 18 percent nationwide.
The job placement rate for the College’s paralegal graduates has been an impressive 90-plus percent since 2003, indicating that students who complete the program have had little trouble landing jobs after graduation.
