<p>What is the average compensation for both a paralegal and a legal assistant at a top law firm? Which one of the two entry level positions have more mobility and look better when applying for grad school or law school?</p>
<p>How many yrs. of schooling does a Paralegal or Legal Assistant require?</p>
<p>At a top law firm I believe you need a bachelors but at a small firm an associated will do. Now for a Legal Assistant it varies. LA's usually come in from trade school big or small firm but sometimes recent college grads take the LA position because it pays more at an entry level, but it's missing all the perks of a Paralegal position...i.e. overtime pay, prestige, social mobility. Legal Assistants cap at 50-60K.</p>
<p>The terms paralegal and legal assistant are often interchangeable. I am a legal assistant at a large law firm in the midwest. A few years ago my firm decided that we should all call ourselves legal assistants since both titles were being used on correspondnce and our firm wanted some consistency so clients would not think these were two different types of positions. </p>
<p>Depending on where you live or what type of firm or company you work for, there are many different routes you can take to becoming a paralegal/legal assistant, generally either 2-year or 4-year paralegal certificates are required but sometimes you can find positions with just a 4-year college degree. Many potential law students often get positions as legal assistants/paralegals before or while attending law school. I have been a legal assistant for 20 years and did not have a certificate, just a college degree, but it seems that more and more employers are currently requiring certificates and there has been a push among national associations to require certification in the profession. </p>
<p>As I mentioned I am in the midwest where salaries are not the highest in the country and earn over $60K (but I also have 20 years experience and work in a very large firm in a large city). According to the US Dept of Labor over 10% of paralegals/legal assistants earn over $60K; their link is attached which includes a general overview of the field as well as a few links to national associations (I would highly recommend contacting a national or local association for more information concerning both education and earnings for your specific area).</p>
<p><a href="http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos114.htm#earnings%5B/url%5D">http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos114.htm#earnings</a></p>