Certificate Program in Paralegal Studies:
Paralegals Help Immigrants Become U.S. Citizens

Paralegals Helping New Immigrants

Like the lawyers that they work for, paralegals do pro bono work—that is, they volunteer their services to help those in the community that might not otherwise be able to afford legal advice.

If you enter a certificate program in paralegal studies, you might want to think early on about the type of pro bono work that you'd like to do to give back to the community you live and work in.

Paralegals Give Back to Their Communities

For example, students from Fairhaven College and Western Washington University helped U.S. immigrants start the naturalization process as part of the Citizenship Day program in Bellingham, Washington. Created by the American Immigration Lawyers Association, the Washington New Americans Program and OneAmerica, Citizenship Day gives volunteer paralegals, lawyers and interpreters the opportunity to provide free assistance to people beginning the process of establishing U.S. citizenship.

The Fairhaven College Center for Law, Diversity and Justice trained students as paralegals. As part of their training for the event, the paralegals were required to read a 70-page immigration manual and go through the process of completing a naturalization form themselves. Students worked one-on-one with their pro bono clients, guiding them through the steps of filling out the required paperwork. Clients were then directed to meetings with a professional immigration attorney, who reviewed their applications and offered counseling and advice.

Paralegals provide a valuable bridge between clients and their attorneys. They work outside of the courtroom performing duties such as assisting in case preparation, drafting contracts and other legal documents, prepping witnesses and more.

The Need for Paralegals

The increased need for legal services in fields such as health care, criminal justice, elder care and environmental law, combined with a desire for companies and law firms to cut their attorney costs, has created a high demand for paralegal services. The employment rate for paralegals is expected to grow by 22 percent by the year 2016, with approximately 53,000 new jobs created, according to recent projections by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

For those with a bachelor's degree, completing a certificate program in paralegal studies is all that is needed to enter the field, making it an ideal career choice for folks looking to change careers without spending years in school.

If you want to learn more about becoming a paralegal, visit All Criminal Justice Schools' Paralegal Resource Center or browse the online directory of certificate programs for paralegals to find a school near you. There are now also online certificate programs for paralegals that you can take from the convenience of your own home.

Source: http://westernfrontonline.net/2009102311468/news/western-students-to-help-naturalize-immigrants/

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