Paralegal - Medical Paralegal Certificate

Program Requirements  Advanced Requirements  Certificate Outcomes

See program requirement sheet.

The Paralegal Program is an American Bar Association approved program designed to train students for careers as paralegals (legal assistants) in law firms, corporate legal departments, and agencies. Paralegals work under the supervision of attorneys to provide non-clerical professional support in the delivery of legal services to clients and the community. Paralegals are not licensed to practice law.

The Medical Paralegal Certificate is designed to provide the paralegal education and skills necessary for students with a medical background to expand their careers into the legal arena. These students will graduate with a certificate that recognizes that they also have a degree or diploma in Nursing. Students will learn substantive law and procedural practices relating to medical-legal issues. This program is designed to allow the graduates to meet the needs of that sector of the business community which requires expertise in medical as well as legal issues, including law firms, hospitals, insurance companies, consulting firms, government agencies, and health care systems. The successful graduate will be able to bring specialized medical training and experience to the legal field, particularly in litigation-related practice, and will be able to apply legal knowledge and skills to health-care related occupations such as risk management.

A Bachelor’s Degree or an Associate of Arts and Sciences Transfer Degree will meet all general education and liberal arts requirements of the Paralegal Program. Other Associate degree or Diploma academic records must be reviewed by a faculty adviser to establish the equivalency of 60 non-legal college quarter credits, 30 of which must be liberal arts credits, including ENGL& 101  and either CMST& 101 , 210  or 220  with courses selected from at least three different discipline areas. These credits also may be completed at Edmonds Community College to meet the overall credit requirements.

Computer Skills and Traditional/On-Campus Course Requirement To graduate from the program, all students are required to obtain and demonstrate certain minimum computer skills and take 15 paralegal credits in traditional, on campus (face-to-face) courses. Students must have the Paralegal Program Computer Skills and Traditional/On-Campus Course(s) Verification form signed by their adviser and submitted to the Enrollment Services prior to or at the time of applying for graduation.

Transfer of Credits A nursing degree or diploma is required for graduation. Up to 10 paralegal credits can be transferred into this certificate program with faculty approval. Transfer of legal credits will be allowed only from other ABA-approved paralegal programs. Any paralegal course transfer approval must be in writing and signed by your Paralegal Program faculty adviser. A Bachelor’s degree or an Associate of Arts/Science degree will satisfy all non-paralegal requirements, including ENGL 101 .

Credit/Grade Requirements This certificate requires successful completion of a minimum of 30 credits as outlined. A minimum of 15 legal credits must be earned in traditional, on-campus classroom instruction. Students are required to maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.0 in all college level courses and must have a minimum 2.0 grade in LEGAL 200 , 205 , and 210 .

Graduation Application A completed Graduation Application form must be submitted to Enrollment Services by the 10th day of the quarter in which the student expects to graduate. Forms are available online or at Enrollment Services located in Lynnwood Hall.

Students are advised to:

• Plan their schedule several quarters in advance in order to accommodate courses that are offered only once or twice a year,
• Review the college catalog for required course prerequisites and include these in schedule planning, and
• Communicate with a faculty adviser.

Note: This requirement planning sheet is not a substitute for meeting with an academic adviser. Meeting the requirements to graduate with an Edmonds Community College degree or certificate is ultimately the responsibility of the student.

PGM Code – 586D
Effective summer 2011 | Rev: 02/11