Hello all.  My name's Brooks. 

 

I decided to sign up in order to find some advice on continuing my education.  I currently work full-time as an instructor at a juvenile wilderness camp; married; live in a rural area.  All of these things add up to me continuing my education in an online environment, as it would be very hard for me to rearrange my life to attend a traditional school.  

I haven't tried to gain a degree sooner, because I have wrapped my mind around the hundreds of things that I could study and use- where I live, or to gain a better job; a job that would be readily available upon completion of my degree.  I've finally realized that I just need to study what my heart is leading me to study.  A college degree in anything is better than what I have, and I know plenty of people that have a degree in one area and work in something totally different.  I don't want to spend my whole life researching the best degree from an economic standpoint.  Isn't that the way I should be going?  Feel free to jump in..

 I have a huge interest in our constitution and our legal system.  So that's where I'm at..  I would like to study law, but may or may not be interested in actually practicing law.  Sadly, this is as far as I've gotten really.  I feel I will do fine studying online, as I am focused and dedicated.  BUT..  I feel lost, so I'll just fire off a few questions and hope for some good advice in return:

 
-I would like to gain at least a bachelor's degree, if not higher.  Should I enroll in an associates program first?  Or should I jump into a bachelor's program to start with, if I know that is what I want to study?

-Any advice, or explanation as to what the difference in a paralegal degree and a legal studies degree are?  Basically the same thing?  Totally different?

-If I go with an associates to start off, should I use a school that I can later attain a bachelor's from?  Or is it that big of a deal, as long as the school in regionally accredited? 

 
I guess I'll leave it here, and see what any of you have to say.  Thank you so much in advance for your replies.

 

Brooks

PS:  Anyone know much about Post University?  Any words you can share on the institution would be appreciated.  Thanks.


 

Hi Brooks, and welcome!

brooksh:

I would like to gain at least a bachelor's degree, if not higher.  Should I enroll in an associates program first?  Or should I jump into a bachelor's program to start with, if I know that is what I want to study?

Honestly, it doesn't really matter.  Since at most schools all of the credit you'd need to earn an Associate's will also apply to a Bachelor's, why not get it along the way?

brooksh:

Any advice, or explanation as to what the difference in a paralegal degree and a legal studies degree are?  Basically the same thing?  Totally different?

Usually that's the same thing.  Given your interest in the constitution and legal system, you may also want to consider programs in criminal justice, which cover a lot of constitutional issues.

brooksh:

If I go with an associates to start off, should I use a school that I can later attain a bachelor's from?  Or is it that big of a deal, as long as the school in regionally accredited?

So long as the school is regionally accredited, it's probably not a big deal.  Sometimes you'll lose a few credits if you switch schools when transitioning from an Associate's program to a Bachelor's program, but you can ask the schools where you'd want to do your Bachelor's and ask them ahead of time to avoid bad surprises.

brooksh:

Anyone know much about Post University?  Any words you can share on the institution would be appreciated.  Thanks.

It's been around a long time, but has changed hands a few times.  It was owned by a Japanese university from 1990 to 2004, and since has been bought by an American company.  I haven't heard anything bad about it.

-=Steve=- 

 

-I would like to gain at least a bachelor's degree, if not higher.  Should I enroll in an associates program first?  Or should I jump into a bachelor's program to start with, if I know that is what I want to study?

It wouldn't hurt to get your associates first just to have something to show for yourself along the way.  In fact many two year degrees will transfer into 4 year schools like Peru State College or Southwestern College.  I got my AS first then went on to my BS.  It saved a lot of money.

 

-Any advice, or explanation as to what the difference in a paralegal degree and a legal studies degree are?  Basically the same thing?  Totally different?

Paralegal and legal studies (as I know them) are kind of like brothers, very similar to outside observation but once you get to know them... different.  A Paralegal degree is designed to teach someone to conduct legal research, documentation and various ideals of jurisprudence.  Legal studies will touch on jurisprudence but likely include various vocational training for careers in corrections, law enforcement, homeland security etc.  For example http://www.cup.edu/majors/alpha_major.jsp?degree_type=0&class_type=online

Personally, from what you do it sounds like Criminal Justice would be a good fit as it covers aspects of law, criminal procedure, criminology, victimology and of course psychology.  Criminal Justice is something of a mix between a law and psychology degree and generally an excellent fit for jobs like what you have described yourself as being into.  A law degree obviously is more concerned with the legal aspects of the matter than the psychological aspects but make no mistake, police, corrections, supervision and security is all about psychology. 

-If I go with an associates to start off, should I use a school that I can later attain a bachelor's from?  Or is it that big of a deal, as long as the school in regionally accredited? 

Honestly that would be nice, but not really necessary.  Once I earned my BS in Criminal Justice I never list my AS degree in Criminal Justice anyways as it would be redundant.  It is assumed that if you have a BSCJ you also have the equivalent of an ASCJ but that's my opinion on the matter.  I received my ASCJ from Ashworth College, but unless you have plenty  of time to twiddle your thumbs I'd look elsewhere.  They do not have the best customer service and for a while I had a time finding someone to accept the transfer of credits at a regionally accredited school.  On the plus side, they are dirt cheap so as an investment you risk very little other than opportunity cost.

I guess I'll leave it here, and see what any of you have to say.  Thank you so much in advance for your replies.

Personally, I'd look at Charter Oak State College or Fort Hayes State University for an Associates in general studies, Associate of Science or Associate of Arts.  If you have a major area of interest and would like to study in that field, use the degree finder for Associates of Criminal Justice.  I've looked at Post as well and they look top notch if you really want to get into the law portion of your field then later go on to a BS in Criminal Justice or whatever.  If you do that an AS in Legal Studies and a BS in Criminal Justice can and should be listed separately on your resume and will give the impression of a solid legal foundation along with Criminal Justice skills, at least in my eyes. 

Whatever you do, don't beat about the bush, anything is better than nothing and you could do a lot worse than Post, I really like that legal studies program but I have to say that they are a tad on the expensive side.  You may wish to consider a less expensive route at this stage in your academic career. 

thank you both very much for your replies..

 I have thought about CJ, and would probably end up with my BS being in CJ as it was suggested.  I agree that Post seems a little high at the moment, but it is the only online school that I've found at this time that offers a legal studies program, which is what I would prefer over paralegal studies.

 
thank you both again for your words of advice.  I will keep you up to date on my decisions.
 

Have you done a search through the eLearners database?  Kaplan University offers a Bachelor of Science in Legal Studies degree:

 http://www.kaplan.edu/ku/schools/paralegalstudies/bsls/default.aspx?School=Paralegal&MainTab=Program&loc=0&ProgramID=33808

 

Cajun:

Paralegal and legal studies (as I know them) are kind of like brothers, very similar to outside observation but once you get to know them... different.  A Paralegal degree is designed to teach someone to conduct legal research, documentation and various ideals of jurisprudence.  Legal studies will touch on jurisprudence but likely include various vocational training for careers in corrections, law enforcement, homeland security etc.

Are you sure that's the way you've seen it?  What you're describing as Legal Studies I've always seen as Criminal Justice, and the job descriptions I've seen for paralegals and legal assistants are interchangeable.   

Cajun:

Personally, I'd look at Charter Oak State College or Fort Hayes State University for an Associates in general studies, Associate of Science or Associate of Arts.

For an Associate's in general studies I'd look at Clovis Community College and San Juan College, both in New Mexico, because their tuition rates are the lowest anywhere (with the exception of California community colleges for in state students).

-=Steve=- 

Steve, the only legal studies I have looked into were at the Masters level honestly.  Jurisprudence seems to be the focus for legal studies whereas being a "paralegal" is more of a vocational training.  I guess I consider the legal studies to be the "why" whereas the paralegal degree is more of a "how".  Criminal Justice on the other hand is like I said, a hybrid of psychology and law.  I wouldn't consider a CJ degree to be a suitable education on how to prepare legal documents or contractual and business legal services.  But a CJ degree would be useful in conducting research into criminal law.  That's my .02 of course.