I was wondering if anyone could tell me how difficult it is to get into the Georgetown Paralegal Program. I know you are required to have a 2.5 GPA and I have a 2.94, but I'm just wondering how competitive it is to be accepted. If anyone could let me know it would be greatly appreciated.

Think if you want to attend the most expensive school in the country to get a degree where the job will never make nearly enough to pay the tuition back. Unless your parents are paying for this, I would think if the price tag is worth it and look at a different school. Just my two cents.

Good advice. The market is oversaturated with paralegals--jobs are tough and many are with temp agencies doing pretty mindless work.

Why would you pay to go to Georgetown and get a paralegal certificate when you can go to NOVA at a fraction of the cost and get the same certificate?


I guess you want the name value of Georgetown on your resume, but being a paralegal, you are going to be doing grunt work at a lousy salary no matter where you studied at.

The market will not recover in time for when you will receive your degree- if you have your heart set on being a paralegal and that is the career you see yourself having for a long time, I would look at a much cheaper school. The school will not matter that much, a paralegal degree from a lower ranked school would probably give you the same opportunities. I know people who work as lawyers at law firms and they do not give a lot of consideration to where their paralegal got their degree, if you are competent that is what they care about.

Also keep in mind with the economy many lawyers are being laid off, which usually doesn't happen ever, so if this is going on I can imagine it will be very tough as a newbie to the industry to land a job. It is unlikely you will get hired at a large law firm, they are barely hiring lawyers. I don't want to discourage you but I want to be honest.

My parents plan on paying for the program, but the point of this thread is to let me know how competitive it is to be accepted. If you guys could stick to that topic that would be nice.

Georgetown is an Ivy League school, competition is always fierce. You have nothing to lose by applying. Good luck.

glurg Wrote:
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> Georgetown is an Ivy League school, competition is
> always fierce. You have nothing to lose by
> applying. Good luck.




Georgetown is not in the Ivy League.

Unless you have over 3.0 it is very difficult to get accepted. The minimun doesn't cut it. Sorry, better to get better grades before you attempt to apply.

xocorrxo Wrote:
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> My parents plan on paying for the program, but the
> point of this thread is to let me know how
> competitive it is to be accepted. If you guys
> could stick to that topic that would be nice.


Dick, don't even bother going to get a paralegal certificate, Georgetown or otherwise. Get hired as an entry level paralegal, records clerk, and work up from their. Paralegal experience is worth more to employers than a certificate.

xocorrxo Wrote:
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> My parents plan on paying for the program, but the
> point of this thread is to let me know how
> competitive it is to be accepted. If you guys
> could stick to that topic that would be nice.

Let me flip this around and ask you: Why do you care how competitive it is to get in?

I'm not asking this to jerk you around. You meet the minimum requirements for the school, which means that you have a shot. You have a source of funding for the school which indicates that scrounging the money to cover the application fee should not be an issue. You blew off some good advice that others posted about lower cost programs or alternative routes to becoming a paralegal, which indicates there is something about the Georgetown program that interests you. That being the case why would you care whether your chances were 2:1, 1:1, 1:2 or 1:5? Wouldn't you want to roll the dice regardless?

If you are serious about finding out where you would land in the admission pool I would suggest you contact the admissions office. Real Schools keep stats on their admissions including percentage of applicants accepted, average (median or 75/25) GPAs and test scores of accepted students, etc. This is the stuff admissions officers brag about to each other at cocktail parties. These numbers change from year to year, and with the economy, including the legal economy, in the tanks the numbers for the current class may be significantly different than for prior years. If you are looking into your chances of getting admitted today, it is far better knowing what the numbers were from last year's admitted class than from classes 5-10 years ago.

I know two people who went to paralegal school and neither one of them ended up working as a paralegal.

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Greetings from Georgetown Paralegal! Thought I'd weigh in on this thread as I am the Director of the Georgetown University Paralegal Studies Program.

On topic - min. 2.5 GPA is what we look for in our applicants to our program. That being said, as the Director of the program I certainly recognize that a GPA is not a person. If an applicant has a diverse or lengthy employment background, solid recommendations from professors who KNOW them and/or direct supervisors who can intelligently discuss their work ethic, plus a strong writing sample, then I will consider their application. At Georgetown, our Jesuit values focus on educating the whole person and it is with an eye towards the whole person that I review our applications. Our acceptance rate is around 85% for Evening Program and it is a bit more competitive for our Summer Intensive Program, around 80%.

Off topic - the legal market is heating up in DC, especially for our students and alumni. Our program has a stellar reputation with paralegal managers in the top AmLaw firms, with government agencies, and with local and international companies. The Georgetown name is certainly important but more important is that hiring managers and attorneys recognize that hiring our graduates creates immediate value for their organization. Time is money in the legal world and the quicker an employee can bill significant work for a client the better.

Maybe the market is "flooded" with people who want to be paralegals, but it is not flowing with experienced, educated paralegals. It is my job as Director of Georgetown's program to make sure that our program is exceptional and notable so that in the pile of resumes, my graduates move to the top.

I am available at any time to further discuss our program. Please contact me directly either via email at ksh54@georgetown.edu or 202-687-7000.

HOYA SAXA,

Kelly

--

Kelly S. Holdcraft

Director, Paralegal Studies Program

University Liaison, Mom Congress

Georgetown University School of Continuing Studies

P 202-687-8466 F 202-687-8954

ksh54@georgetown.edu



Learn more about Georgetown Paralegal

Follow me on twitter @HoyaParalegals

Network with me on LinkedIn

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Hi there,

I would definitely look into seeing how easy it is to get paralegal jobs after graduating from this school. You don't want to put all of this effort into an expensive school if it can't even get you anywhere. Best of luck!

Sarah

may wish to reconsider.

http://www.wtop.com/?nid=109&sid=2570964
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Don't bother with a paralegal certificate. The legal field is over saturated with applicants. There are so few jobs that people with JDs are applying for paralegal jobs. Schools like Georgetown are doing a huge disservice to the public and legal profession by overcharging for tuition and misleading people with regards to the prospects of finding a job when you graduate.

Moreover, as a paralegal, you'll be the bitch of the office and you'll be hard pressed to find a law firm where you're actually respected by the attorneys.

Law Student Wrote:
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>
> Moreover, as a paralegal, you'll be the bitch of
> the office and you'll be hard pressed to find a
> law firm where you're actually respected by the
> attorneys.


I had a relative who worked as a legal secretary at a law firm. The partners were a bunch of coked up douche bags who made her life hell until she quit.

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It is obvious that none of these individuals who have posted comments are in the legal field nor wish to enter the legal profession. I too plan to complete the program. Although the market is saturated with legal educated individuals it is so-called flooded with every other profession. In the world of law where you are educated means a lot. Also, I will be attending law school and I realize that even when obtaining my JD, all endorsements count. If you are blessed enough to have this program paid for by your parents like me, by all means do so it will only help never hinder. Pessimists.

Why don't you try Georgetown's dentistry program? I've heard it's the bee's knees.

What exactly does a paralegal do? How are they different than lawyers? What is the difference in years of education? How much is a starting salary? How much does the Georgetown school cost?

define paralegal Wrote:
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> What exactly does a paralegal do? How are they
> different than lawyers? What is the difference in
> years of education? How much is a starting
> salary? How much does the Georgetown school cost?


Theyre research assistants basically. They dont argue cases. Schooling is shorter and they make a lot less. Its like a trained researcher basically

Although am awesome University, the program overall is partly okay, but some of the teachers instructing the classes for the program should NOT be teaching. And in my opinion are there to make a name for themselves, because it's Georgetown, and it serves their interest before the student.

Once in the program it is easy to discern what professor wants you to learn and wants to help, and what professor is just reading notes out of a text, or from notes they learned in law school.

Get a Masters in Paralegal, as it may serve you better in the real world.

This is an opinion, but also heard from other students that took the classes as well.

Masters in Paralegal?

Why the fuck wouldn't you just go to law school instead?

Stop by any strip club in DC and you can find many a laid off paralegal.

It's white collar trade school. If your check clears, you're in, everything SexyKelly4U said notwithstanding.

Great program, great teachers, wonderful staff. This is basically a masters program or the equivalent, and a great preparation for law school - that is why a lot of people take the program.

Yes, some of the teachers are not great teachers in the program, but it gives them a first time at trying to teach, a beginning. and that's a good thing.

As I am already an attorney, my say, if you are not sure about law school, a program like this could really be helpful, and give some insight.
best of luck to all.

I graduated from Georgetown's Legal Assistant Program in the early 80s. At that time and probably still, it was part of their School for Summer and Continuing Education. The Paralegal tuition and the undergraduate tuition had nothing to do with each other. It's a vocational certificate.

If you have the perceptual skill to be an attorney, be one. But be aware attorneys from pedestrian law schools, and all but the top graduates of even "the best" law schools, struggle to find suitable employment.

Mediocre law school graduates become glorified paralegals. Do a lot of court appointed criminal defense. Or chase ambulances.

There's a world of difference between those who clerk for appellate judges, and those who collect debts.

Between two Paralegal graduates who earned high marks, connections and real world smarts are what gets you hired. You make those connections in relevant employment, so don't slight that gunning for a piece of paper.