May 31, 2022 • 21 mins
In this episode, we will find out the details of the Athens Tech Paralegal Studies program.
Achieve More with Athens Tech, the official podcast of Athens Technical College.
A unit of the Technical College System of Georgia. Equal Opportunity Institution.
Welcome to achieve more with Athens Tech, the official podcast of Athens Technical College. This is where you'll discover how the programs at Athens Tech can connect you with in-demand and high paying careers. Today, we're going to hear how the Paralegal Studies Program has changed people's lives.00:00:19S2Without Athens Tech, I would not be sitting here as a lawyer. I certainly wouldn't have gone on to get a bachelor's degree in paralegal studies. I would never have gotten a job as a paralegal in the first place. And Athens tech, at least for me, was an institution that was there at the exact right time for a price that I could certainly afford with a schedule I could certainly make, and literally set me up in a whole different trajectory than I even imagined. But she let me go all the way through and in just a handful of years end up going to law school, passing the bar, joining a law firm and making partner with two attorneys that are better than I am. So I don't think any of that was possible without them.00:01:02S1We'll also hear from graduates who've come back and are now professional lawyers.00:01:08S3I talk to people all the time and they say, I'm thinking about going back to school and thinking about this and thinking about this. And something that that attorneys tech will allow people to do is to kind of dip their toe into the water, take a class or two and see if they like it. But in Athens tech, it's affordable. And I think that you can experiment a little bit without jumping completely into the pool. For those of you who are kind of on the fence about it, I would just say if your heart is telling you to that you may be interested in it, why not just try it? Pick one class that you may be interested in. Take the class. And if you don't like it, fine, and you have it and you're not out thousands and thousands of dollars like you would be a
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Episode Transcript
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S1 (00:01):
Welcome to achieve more with Athens Tech, the official podcast
of Athens Technical College. This is where you'll discover how
the programs at Athens Tech can connect you with in-demand
and high paying careers. Today, we're going to hear how
the Paralegal Studies Program has changed people's lives.
S2 (00:19):
Without Athens Tech, I would not be sitting here as
a lawyer. I certainly wouldn't have gone on to get
a bachelor's degree in paralegal studies. I would never have
gotten a job as a paralegal in the first place.
And Athens tech, at least for me, was an institution
that was there at the exact right time for a
price that I could certainly afford with a schedule I
(00:41):
could certainly make, and literally set me up in a
whole different trajectory than I even imagined. But she let
me go all the way through and in just a
handful of years end up going to law school, passing
the bar, joining a law firm and making partner with
two attorneys that are better than I am. So I
don't think any of that was possible without them.
S1 (01:02):
We'll also hear from graduates who've come back and are
now professional lawyers.
S3 (01:08):
I talk to people all the time and they say,
I'm thinking about going back to school and thinking about
this and thinking about this. And something that that attorneys
tech will allow people to do is to kind of
dip their toe into the water, take a class or
two and see if they like it. But in Athens tech,
it's affordable. And I think that you can experiment a
(01:28):
little bit without jumping completely into the pool. For those
of you who are kind of on the fence about it,
I would just say if your heart is telling you
to that you may be interested in it, why not
just try it? Pick one class that you may be
interested in. Take the class. And if you don't like it, fine,
and you have it and you're not out thousands and
thousands of dollars like you would be at a university.
(01:51):
My advice would just be to just just try a
little bit and see it and see if you like
it or maybe even speak to a lawyer close to
you about what they do and maybe go shadow them
for a day and see if there's something that you're
interested in as well.
S1 (02:04):
Kai Hamer is the program chair for paralegal studies at
Athens Tech, and she recalls a student who returned to
give back to the community.
S4 (02:11):
My name is Tai Chi Moore. I am the program
chair for paralegal studies here at Athens Technical College. Andrew Prater,
he is actually a graduate of the program. He finished
his undergraduate degree and then decided that he wanted to
pursue something in the legal field. So he came back
(02:35):
and got his an additional associate's degree in parallel studies
and then went onto Fossil. So he's been working in
the legal field for a while and he wanted to
come back and give back to the program where he
got his start. And so he is teaching in our program.
S3 (02:58):
So my name is Andrew Prater. I am an attorney
based out of Winer, Georgia. I did graduate from the
state and paralegal program, I believe, about ten years ago
after I did that work as a paralegal in Athens, Georgia,
(03:19):
for about four or five years, and then decided to
go back to law school, went to law school at
Georgia State University, worked in Atlanta for a couple of
years and taught at other places. And now I'm back
up in Athens and teaching at Athens Tech. So it's
good to be kind of back in the.
S1 (03:36):
Athens tag paralegal program will prepare you to enter the
workforce and get ahead of the competition.
S2 (03:41):
My name is Brian Cathy. I'm currently a partner at
Jordan Woodward. Kathy we're a medical malpractice firm in Atlanta, Georgia,
and recently opened an office in Athens, Georgia. And I
went through the Athens tech paralegal program. Several classes had
me prepare a project, prepare pleadings, prepared to see a
case all the way through, bringing the case in. It
(04:02):
intake through, working it up all the way up to
filing a complaint. And that project in particular, when I
ended up at a firm that did some contract litigation
and was moving over into doing personal injury litigation, I
actually use my project from Athens Tech to double check
myself behind the scenes. Sometimes before I would present it
(04:23):
to the attorney. I worked for it and it gave
me almost a cheat sheet and a little bit of
extra confidence so that as I was putting this together
and acting like I'm somewhat knew what I was doing
in a law firm, I gave it an extra boost
of confidence, an extra little thing I could check to
make sure I was doing it the way I'd done
it before and prepared me for a way that probably
convinced my boss I knew maybe even a little bit
(04:45):
more than I actually did.
S1 (04:46):
The paralegal studies program is not just a certificate, it's
a real accredited degree. Professor Andrew Prater explains.
S3 (04:54):
Right. So I think that one of the things that
I've said this before is the ABA is sort of
sort of. The occasion I think is important. I felt
proud being able to put that. I had a degree
that was certified by the ABA on my resume. I
thought that that would help my resume stand out to
(05:17):
against an applicant who may just have a paralegal certificate.
Not to diminish other programs because they are excellent programs.
But it is the fact is that those are certificates.
They are not degrees. Another something that I think students
(05:38):
that are considering this program should take into account is
that you never know what you're going to necessarily want
to do in the future. You may want to go
to go on with your education, get a bachelor's degree,
you may want to go on and get after your
bachelor's degree. You may want to go to law school.
(05:58):
So if you instead of getting a certificate, which is
going to help you in that journey in the same
way and allows you to get a degree which is,
you know, halfway through in a lot of cases, halfway
through a bachelor's degree. So that was hugely important to me,
and I think that's a huge advantage of the program.
S1 (06:18):
It's not only a quality accredited program, it's even recognized
by the American Bar Association.
S4 (06:25):
Definitely it is a quality program. We are an FDA
approved paralegal program. And in fact, Athens TEC was the
first school in Georgia to get ABA approval in 1992.
So it has been recognized as a quality program for
(06:48):
a good while. We are because of our ABA approval.
That means that in addition to the state regulations, the
state standards that we are operating under through the technical
college system of Georgia, we also have standards from the
(07:09):
American Bar Association that we have to adhere to. And
in fact, I actually just hit submit on our re
approval report to the American Bar Association. I feel confident
in that. We you know, we produce excellent products. I
(07:30):
have had nothing but positive reviews from the employers in
our local legal community. So I feel good about our
program and I think it is a wise investment, especially
with the, you know, the affordable tuition from the technical
(07:52):
colleges in our state.
S1 (07:55):
The Athens TAC Paralegal Studies Program prepares you for law
school and can lead to further opportunities within the community.
S2 (08:01):
I think the few of us that were paralegals just
to start there, the few of us that had paralegal
experience before law school, the whole first year of law
school was much, much easier than it was for anybody else.
We had somewhat already adjusted our thinking, already knew somewhat
what to expect coming into it, and knew the basics
of law in at least several of the areas that
(08:22):
we could build on. So for anybody going that even
thinks about going to law school as part of a
long term plan, I think paralegal school is definitely worth it.
I don't actually recall anybody else in law school that
I can remember which paralegal program they went through to
necessarily compare. But I can say that I have never
(08:44):
met anybody that came through the Athens tech program that
got out of the other side and seemed like they
didn't have a pretty good handle on what they were doing.
So even though I didn't see it in law school,
I have seen it in other firms, I have seen
it in other people I've met. And currently I've been
doing an internship where I was an internship site for
a Athens tech paralegal student, and she was so incredible
(09:08):
that we literally offered her a job last Friday. Not
not only can I speak to what it did for me,
but now I'm kind of going back to the well
to look for new talent and take advantage of how
good the program is.
S3 (09:17):
Working as a paralegal before law school, I do think
people ask me all the time if that gave me
a leg up in law. So I think it I
definitely think it did. I think it's given me more
of a leg up now that I'm on the other
side of law school, because as is paralegals that are
working in the profession, know, you're the one doing a
lot of the actual work. So so learning how to
(09:40):
do that and doing the actual work before law school
and then keeping that in the back of my mind
as I was, you know, going through law school. And
it's really made a big difference to me.
S4 (09:51):
So if someone is, number one interested in the law
and they may or may not be interested. And ultimately
go into law school, but they want to be involved
in the legal profession. Paralegal is a awesome opportunity and
option if you enjoy being in a support position and
(10:15):
not necessarily being the person in the limelight, it's a
great position for you. I would say that some of
your skills that you probably want to already have, but
that you could also develop while in the program are
being well-organized, detail oriented. Curious about not just the law,
(10:40):
but people. And you know what happens in our daily
lives and because there's so much that, you know, we
as as citizens are touched by the legal system. And
it's a wonderful opportunity if you're curious about how the
system works, if you are already working in a profession
(11:07):
where you have, you know, worked with in customer service,
you worked in areas where, you know, you are supporting others.
You are already a great candidate to be a paralegal.
It's not I don't think that it has to be
(11:27):
something where, you know, you're blowing out an IQ test
or you have the highest grades from high school or
previous college. It's more about your your soft skills and
your dedication to the profession and your dedication to to
supporting your supervising attorney than it is anything else.
S1 (11:49):
Are you still on the fence? Let's talk to Shelly Stevens.
She's an Athens tech graduate and a practicing paralegal, and
she tells us how rewarding the profession can be.
S4 (11:59):
My name is Frances Michele Stevens, but I go by
Shelly from for Michel. Do it. What are you waiting for? Like, I.
I don't know. What why? I don't know why I
chose culinary arts in the first place. Because paralegal studies
is really where it's at. I am so I'm so
comfortable in my life right now. I have I have
(12:22):
two kids who both my daughter's going into middle school.
My son's already in middle school. And and I have
a husband and I live and work in my community.
I work 6 minutes from home. I am 10 minutes
from each of my children's school. If there's anything that
me that I need to do, I have this amazing
(12:43):
work life balance where I'm able to drop my kids
off at school in the morning. I'm able to pick
them up in the afternoons. I'm able to return to
work and complete. It needs to be completed after after that,
if necessary. And and and it's just rewarding. It's so rewarding.
I see clients come in and they're going through some
(13:03):
of the toughest times of their lives. And this this
industry is not for the faint of heart, but it's
so rewarding to be able to help them see something
to fruition, see something to the end, one of one
of the hardest parts about the area of law that
we practice, we practice in as a we, not me.
I don't practice law. My supervisor, an attorney practices law
(13:26):
and I assistant. So that area of law that we're
in is as a personal injury. Mostly we do mostly
personal injury. We do some family law, but mostly personal injury.
And I have to say, these people are coming to
us broken and bruised and hurting, and they're just looking
(13:47):
for some form of relief. They're they're looking for somebody
to say, oh, yeah, this definitely should not have happened
to you, and we're going to help you get back
to as good or better, because that's what the law says,
is that there should be or they should be returned
back to as good or better. And so when that happens,
we actually get to see them live. When we settle
(14:08):
something and you see them go like it's like a
relief that comes off of them and you're like, we
did it. You know, this was really the most rewarding
day to see you take a deep breath and actually
able to exhale finally. And and that's really what it's
about is actually, you know, helping them. And it's as
if this person that I'm speaking to is is if
(14:30):
you're on the edge or on the fence about whether
or not this is the right thing for you, if
you want to see somebody be put back together, be
put whole, made whole again, you want to see that
that this is the place for you because you get
to do that. You get to help them do that.
And I mean, it's rewarding. It's rewarding. Absolutely. To be
(14:51):
able to put those pieces back in the right place.
S1 (14:55):
The paralegal studies program at Athens Tech not only prepares
you for law school and. On the learning about the
mom can be fun.
S3 (15:04):
I think this is fun. The law is fun. It's interesting.
It's engaging. I think that this this career as a
paralegal is suited to people who are just curious. Curious
people by nature. Because. It is impossible to know everything,
(15:24):
even if you've been practicing law for 25 years. I
would wager that if you talk to lawyers that have
been practicing that long or paralegals have been doing it
that long. They'll probably tell you that they still learn
something new almost every day because the facts that your
clients will present you with and the situations where you
(15:45):
may be called upon to to help or do research
are just so varied. So it's a good opportunity to
learn something new every day and to into a thing.
So I think being a curious person is hugely important.
I think it's also important. It would be a good
profession for people who enjoy writing, because the law, if
(16:09):
you ask me, is it's just words where the word
oriented people are written and spoken. So for those of
you who like to write, this might be a good
program to look into.
S1 (16:22):
Earning a degree in paralegal studies at Athens Tech can
also translate to financial stability.
S2 (16:29):
I know in firms that I have worked in, I've
seen ranges, you know, from about $15 up to somebody
who's been doing it for, you know, five or six years.
That can certainly get up to 25, 30. And really
the sky's almost the limit. You know, if a paralegal
is able to help the attorney make money, then it's
(16:49):
certainly in the attorneys best interest to keep the paralegal
happy and keep the money flowing, keep that relationship going.
S3 (16:54):
I have seen, I think, the typical salary range for
paralegals that I see right now is somewhere between that
maybe 35, 30, 35 on the very low side, all
the way up to 70 or more. I know plenty
of people that are earning $70,000 as a salary, as
(17:19):
a paralegal, which is more than some attorneys make. To
be frank. So it's an excellent profession to to to
get into. And I think that the probably average is
somewhere between 40 and 50.
S1 (17:37):
Whether you're a new student or someone with a postgraduate
degree who's looking to change careers, Athans Tex offers multiple
options to accommodate you.
S4 (17:46):
Well, we actually have two program options. One is our
associate's degree, which is the degree that we've had since
the beginning of the program. It's a two year degree,
and it is composed of some general education courses in
addition to the paralegal courses. We then have also gotten
(18:12):
ABA approval to offer a post baccalaureate certificate in paralegal
studies in order to qualify for that program. You obviously
because it's post back, you have to have an undergraduate
degree already, doesn't matter what it's in. And so then
you come in already having those gen ed classes and
(18:37):
so you only take paralegal courses and it has a
shorter time period. It is actually the only post baccalaureate
certificate that the technical college system of Georgia is currently
offering is being offered at several schools who have paralegal programs,
but it is the only post back certificate in the system.
S1 (19:00):
At Athens Tech. You can achieve more and start a
new career.
S3 (19:04):
And I have said this many times and I'm in
I mean it. Athens Tech, literally. I mean, it changed
my life completely. I, I did have a bachelor's degree,
but when I came there to Athens Tech and like
I said, I had I had mostly worked in the
service industry and I was 30 years old. And I
(19:27):
didn't I had never worked in an office in my life.
I certainly didn't know how to tie a tie, but
I went to Athens Tech. The program exposed me to
a variety of ideas and subjects within the law that
allowed me to exercise more control over my life. It
(19:49):
allowed me to apply for jobs in a variety of
legal settings. And like I said, yeah, that was important
that it was ABA certified and it exposed me to
like I said a moment ago, the curriculum in the
program is going to expose you to a variety of
(20:10):
legal practice areas criminal law, bankruptcy, family law, more transactional
stuff like contracts or business. And surely between all these ideas,
a student will find something that they are interested in.
In again. And control, I think is is a good word.
More and more agency over your own life and giving
yourself more options is really important. And when you graduate
(20:33):
with an associate's degree in paralegal studies, I think that
a student has a lot more control and many more
options available to them.
S1 (20:46):
Thanks for listening to achieve more with Athens ten, the
official podcast of Athens Technical College. For more information, visit
Athens text edu.
Welcome to achieve more with Athens Tech, the official podcast
of Athens Technical College. This is where you'll discover how
the programs at Athens Tech can connect you with in-demand
and high paying careers. Today, we're going to hear how
the Paralegal Studies Program has changed people's lives.
S2 (00:19):
Without Athens Tech, I would not be sitting here as
a lawyer. I certainly wouldn't have gone on to get
a bachelor's degree in paralegal studies. I would never have
gotten a job as a paralegal in the first place.
And Athens tech, at least for me, was an institution
that was there at the exact right time for a
price that I could certainly afford with a schedule I
(00:41):
could certainly make, and literally set me up in a
whole different trajectory than I even imagined. But she let
me go all the way through and in just a
handful of years end up going to law school, passing
the bar, joining a law firm and making partner with
two attorneys that are better than I am. So I
don't think any of that was possible without them.
S1 (01:02):
We'll also hear from graduates who've come back and are
now professional lawyers.
S3 (01:08):
I talk to people all the time and they say,
I'm thinking about going back to school and thinking about
this and thinking about this. And something that that attorneys
tech will allow people to do is to kind of
dip their toe into the water, take a class or
two and see if they like it. But in Athens tech,
it's affordable. And I think that you can experiment a
(01:28):
little bit without jumping completely into the pool. For those
of you who are kind of on the fence about it,
I would just say if your heart is telling you
to that you may be interested in it, why not
just try it? Pick one class that you may be
interested in. Take the class. And if you don't like it, fine,
and you have it and you're not out thousands and
thousands of dollars like you would be at a university.
(01:51):
My advice would just be to just just try a
little bit and see it and see if you like
it or maybe even speak to a lawyer close to
you about what they do and maybe go shadow them
for a day and see if there's something that you're
interested in as well.
S1 (02:04):
Kai Hamer is the program chair for paralegal studies at
Athens Tech, and she recalls a student who returned to
give back to the community.
S4 (02:11):
My name is Tai Chi Moore. I am the program
chair for paralegal studies here at Athens Technical College. Andrew Prater,
he is actually a graduate of the program. He finished
his undergraduate degree and then decided that he wanted to
pursue something in the legal field. So he came back
(02:35):
and got his an additional associate's degree in parallel studies
and then went onto Fossil. So he's been working in
the legal field for a while and he wanted to
come back and give back to the program where he
got his start. And so he is teaching in our program.
S3 (02:58):
So my name is Andrew Prater. I am an attorney
based out of Winer, Georgia. I did graduate from the
state and paralegal program, I believe, about ten years ago
after I did that work as a paralegal in Athens, Georgia,
(03:19):
for about four or five years, and then decided to
go back to law school, went to law school at
Georgia State University, worked in Atlanta for a couple of
years and taught at other places. And now I'm back
up in Athens and teaching at Athens Tech. So it's
good to be kind of back in the.
S1 (03:36):
Athens tag paralegal program will prepare you to enter the
workforce and get ahead of the competition.
S2 (03:41):
My name is Brian Cathy. I'm currently a partner at
Jordan Woodward. Kathy we're a medical malpractice firm in Atlanta, Georgia,
and recently opened an office in Athens, Georgia. And I
went through the Athens tech paralegal program. Several classes had
me prepare a project, prepare pleadings, prepared to see a
case all the way through, bringing the case in. It
(04:02):
intake through, working it up all the way up to
filing a complaint. And that project in particular, when I
ended up at a firm that did some contract litigation
and was moving over into doing personal injury litigation, I
actually use my project from Athens Tech to double check
myself behind the scenes. Sometimes before I would present it
(04:23):
to the attorney. I worked for it and it gave
me almost a cheat sheet and a little bit of
extra confidence so that as I was putting this together
and acting like I'm somewhat knew what I was doing
in a law firm, I gave it an extra boost
of confidence, an extra little thing I could check to
make sure I was doing it the way I'd done
it before and prepared me for a way that probably
convinced my boss I knew maybe even a little bit
(04:45):
more than I actually did.
S1 (04:46):
The paralegal studies program is not just a certificate, it's
a real accredited degree. Professor Andrew Prater explains.
S3 (04:54):
Right. So I think that one of the things that
I've said this before is the ABA is sort of
sort of. The occasion I think is important. I felt
proud being able to put that. I had a degree
that was certified by the ABA on my resume. I
thought that that would help my resume stand out to
(05:17):
against an applicant who may just have a paralegal certificate.
Not to diminish other programs because they are excellent programs.
But it is the fact is that those are certificates.
They are not degrees. Another something that I think students
(05:38):
that are considering this program should take into account is
that you never know what you're going to necessarily want
to do in the future. You may want to go
to go on with your education, get a bachelor's degree,
you may want to go on and get after your
bachelor's degree. You may want to go to law school.
(05:58):
So if you instead of getting a certificate, which is
going to help you in that journey in the same
way and allows you to get a degree which is,
you know, halfway through in a lot of cases, halfway
through a bachelor's degree. So that was hugely important to me,
and I think that's a huge advantage of the program.
S1 (06:18):
It's not only a quality accredited program, it's even recognized
by the American Bar Association.
S4 (06:25):
Definitely it is a quality program. We are an FDA
approved paralegal program. And in fact, Athens TEC was the
first school in Georgia to get ABA approval in 1992.
So it has been recognized as a quality program for
(06:48):
a good while. We are because of our ABA approval.
That means that in addition to the state regulations, the
state standards that we are operating under through the technical
college system of Georgia, we also have standards from the
(07:09):
American Bar Association that we have to adhere to. And
in fact, I actually just hit submit on our re
approval report to the American Bar Association. I feel confident
in that. We you know, we produce excellent products. I
(07:30):
have had nothing but positive reviews from the employers in
our local legal community. So I feel good about our
program and I think it is a wise investment, especially
with the, you know, the affordable tuition from the technical
(07:52):
colleges in our state.
S1 (07:55):
The Athens TAC Paralegal Studies Program prepares you for law
school and can lead to further opportunities within the community.
S2 (08:01):
I think the few of us that were paralegals just
to start there, the few of us that had paralegal
experience before law school, the whole first year of law
school was much, much easier than it was for anybody else.
We had somewhat already adjusted our thinking, already knew somewhat
what to expect coming into it, and knew the basics
of law in at least several of the areas that
(08:22):
we could build on. So for anybody going that even
thinks about going to law school as part of a
long term plan, I think paralegal school is definitely worth it.
I don't actually recall anybody else in law school that
I can remember which paralegal program they went through to
necessarily compare. But I can say that I have never
(08:44):
met anybody that came through the Athens tech program that
got out of the other side and seemed like they
didn't have a pretty good handle on what they were doing.
So even though I didn't see it in law school,
I have seen it in other firms, I have seen
it in other people I've met. And currently I've been
doing an internship where I was an internship site for
a Athens tech paralegal student, and she was so incredible
(09:08):
that we literally offered her a job last Friday. Not
not only can I speak to what it did for me,
but now I'm kind of going back to the well
to look for new talent and take advantage of how
good the program is.
S3 (09:17):
Working as a paralegal before law school, I do think
people ask me all the time if that gave me
a leg up in law. So I think it I
definitely think it did. I think it's given me more
of a leg up now that I'm on the other
side of law school, because as is paralegals that are
working in the profession, know, you're the one doing a
lot of the actual work. So so learning how to
(09:40):
do that and doing the actual work before law school
and then keeping that in the back of my mind
as I was, you know, going through law school. And
it's really made a big difference to me.
S4 (09:51):
So if someone is, number one interested in the law
and they may or may not be interested. And ultimately
go into law school, but they want to be involved
in the legal profession. Paralegal is a awesome opportunity and
option if you enjoy being in a support position and
(10:15):
not necessarily being the person in the limelight, it's a
great position for you. I would say that some of
your skills that you probably want to already have, but
that you could also develop while in the program are
being well-organized, detail oriented. Curious about not just the law,
(10:40):
but people. And you know what happens in our daily
lives and because there's so much that, you know, we
as as citizens are touched by the legal system. And
it's a wonderful opportunity if you're curious about how the
system works, if you are already working in a profession
(11:07):
where you have, you know, worked with in customer service,
you worked in areas where, you know, you are supporting others.
You are already a great candidate to be a paralegal.
It's not I don't think that it has to be
(11:27):
something where, you know, you're blowing out an IQ test
or you have the highest grades from high school or
previous college. It's more about your your soft skills and
your dedication to the profession and your dedication to to
supporting your supervising attorney than it is anything else.
S1 (11:49):
Are you still on the fence? Let's talk to Shelly Stevens.
She's an Athens tech graduate and a practicing paralegal, and
she tells us how rewarding the profession can be.
S4 (11:59):
My name is Frances Michele Stevens, but I go by
Shelly from for Michel. Do it. What are you waiting for? Like, I.
I don't know. What why? I don't know why I
chose culinary arts in the first place. Because paralegal studies
is really where it's at. I am so I'm so
comfortable in my life right now. I have I have
(12:22):
two kids who both my daughter's going into middle school.
My son's already in middle school. And and I have
a husband and I live and work in my community.
I work 6 minutes from home. I am 10 minutes
from each of my children's school. If there's anything that
me that I need to do, I have this amazing
(12:43):
work life balance where I'm able to drop my kids
off at school in the morning. I'm able to pick
them up in the afternoons. I'm able to return to
work and complete. It needs to be completed after after that,
if necessary. And and and it's just rewarding. It's so rewarding.
I see clients come in and they're going through some
(13:03):
of the toughest times of their lives. And this this
industry is not for the faint of heart, but it's
so rewarding to be able to help them see something
to fruition, see something to the end, one of one
of the hardest parts about the area of law that
we practice, we practice in as a we, not me.
I don't practice law. My supervisor, an attorney practices law
(13:26):
and I assistant. So that area of law that we're
in is as a personal injury. Mostly we do mostly
personal injury. We do some family law, but mostly personal injury.
And I have to say, these people are coming to
us broken and bruised and hurting, and they're just looking
(13:47):
for some form of relief. They're they're looking for somebody
to say, oh, yeah, this definitely should not have happened
to you, and we're going to help you get back
to as good or better, because that's what the law says,
is that there should be or they should be returned
back to as good or better. And so when that happens,
we actually get to see them live. When we settle
(14:08):
something and you see them go like it's like a
relief that comes off of them and you're like, we
did it. You know, this was really the most rewarding
day to see you take a deep breath and actually
able to exhale finally. And and that's really what it's
about is actually, you know, helping them. And it's as
if this person that I'm speaking to is is if
(14:30):
you're on the edge or on the fence about whether
or not this is the right thing for you, if
you want to see somebody be put back together, be
put whole, made whole again, you want to see that
that this is the place for you because you get
to do that. You get to help them do that.
And I mean, it's rewarding. It's rewarding. Absolutely. To be
(14:51):
able to put those pieces back in the right place.
S1 (14:55):
The paralegal studies program at Athens Tech not only prepares
you for law school and. On the learning about the
mom can be fun.
S3 (15:04):
I think this is fun. The law is fun. It's interesting.
It's engaging. I think that this this career as a
paralegal is suited to people who are just curious. Curious
people by nature. Because. It is impossible to know everything,
(15:24):
even if you've been practicing law for 25 years. I
would wager that if you talk to lawyers that have
been practicing that long or paralegals have been doing it
that long. They'll probably tell you that they still learn
something new almost every day because the facts that your
clients will present you with and the situations where you
(15:45):
may be called upon to to help or do research
are just so varied. So it's a good opportunity to
learn something new every day and to into a thing.
So I think being a curious person is hugely important.
I think it's also important. It would be a good
profession for people who enjoy writing, because the law, if
(16:09):
you ask me, is it's just words where the word
oriented people are written and spoken. So for those of
you who like to write, this might be a good
program to look into.
S1 (16:22):
Earning a degree in paralegal studies at Athens Tech can
also translate to financial stability.
S2 (16:29):
I know in firms that I have worked in, I've
seen ranges, you know, from about $15 up to somebody
who's been doing it for, you know, five or six years.
That can certainly get up to 25, 30. And really
the sky's almost the limit. You know, if a paralegal
is able to help the attorney make money, then it's
(16:49):
certainly in the attorneys best interest to keep the paralegal
happy and keep the money flowing, keep that relationship going.
S3 (16:54):
I have seen, I think, the typical salary range for
paralegals that I see right now is somewhere between that
maybe 35, 30, 35 on the very low side, all
the way up to 70 or more. I know plenty
of people that are earning $70,000 as a salary, as
(17:19):
a paralegal, which is more than some attorneys make. To
be frank. So it's an excellent profession to to to
get into. And I think that the probably average is
somewhere between 40 and 50.
S1 (17:37):
Whether you're a new student or someone with a postgraduate
degree who's looking to change careers, Athans Tex offers multiple
options to accommodate you.
S4 (17:46):
Well, we actually have two program options. One is our
associate's degree, which is the degree that we've had since
the beginning of the program. It's a two year degree,
and it is composed of some general education courses in
addition to the paralegal courses. We then have also gotten
(18:12):
ABA approval to offer a post baccalaureate certificate in paralegal
studies in order to qualify for that program. You obviously
because it's post back, you have to have an undergraduate
degree already, doesn't matter what it's in. And so then
you come in already having those gen ed classes and
(18:37):
so you only take paralegal courses and it has a
shorter time period. It is actually the only post baccalaureate
certificate that the technical college system of Georgia is currently
offering is being offered at several schools who have paralegal programs,
but it is the only post back certificate in the system.
S1 (19:00):
At Athens Tech. You can achieve more and start a
new career.
S3 (19:04):
And I have said this many times and I'm in
I mean it. Athens Tech, literally. I mean, it changed
my life completely. I, I did have a bachelor's degree,
but when I came there to Athens Tech and like
I said, I had I had mostly worked in the
service industry and I was 30 years old. And I
(19:27):
didn't I had never worked in an office in my life.
I certainly didn't know how to tie a tie, but
I went to Athens Tech. The program exposed me to
a variety of ideas and subjects within the law that
allowed me to exercise more control over my life. It
(19:49):
allowed me to apply for jobs in a variety of
legal settings. And like I said, yeah, that was important
that it was ABA certified and it exposed me to
like I said a moment ago, the curriculum in the
program is going to expose you to a variety of
(20:10):
legal practice areas criminal law, bankruptcy, family law, more transactional
stuff like contracts or business. And surely between all these ideas,
a student will find something that they are interested in.
In again. And control, I think is is a good word.
More and more agency over your own life and giving
yourself more options is really important. And when you graduate
(20:33):
with an associate's degree in paralegal studies, I think that
a student has a lot more control and many more
options available to them.
S1 (20:46):
Thanks for listening to achieve more with Athens ten, the
official podcast of Athens Technical College. For more information, visit
Athens text edu.
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