Online Law Degree

Posts Tagged ‘earn’

i’m in re-training, and have resources to attend school full time. would love to practice law.where do i begin?

There are many reasons why people choose to pursue a career in law; to work in a stimulating work environment; to help other people that need the aid of a talented lawyer; to attain the prestige and social status that having a Juris Doctor can offer.  But one thing that almost all lawyers will agree on…yet seldom admit to, is that one of the primary reasons many become lawyers is because of the potential financial rewards that a legal career can offer.  The question then becomes…just how much do lawyers make?  What areas of law are the most lucrative?  Finally, how can you position myself to most aggressively attain those positions that will gain personal wealth?

While there is no sure-fire way of guaranteeing that attaining a law degree will make you wealthy there are certain rules to keep in mind and certain areas of law to pursue that have a much greater chance of that becoming the end result than others.  One of the rules is that private law firms always pay more than public sector jobs.  A 2001 survey found that of those graduating from a top 20 law school, jobs in the public averaged $50,000 while private firm salaries were double that near $125,000.

The next thing to keep in mind is that just like many Wall Street jobs, a substantial part of high paying lawyers make their income through a bonus structure.  Bonuses are typically non-existent in public sector or judicial jobs while working in corporate law positions can offer bonuses, but typically not nearly as much as the private firms will offer.  It is not unusual in a well-positioned private firm for the bonus to equal 100% or much more than the base salary.  This potential upside carries risk of course…if the private firm does not bring in successful cases they may cut staff rapidly or even go out of business.  The potential upside, however can be very lucrative and is why positions in select private firms can be extraordinarily competitive.  Partners in a ‘top’ law firm can pull in $500,000 or even $1,000,000 or more.

With the fact that private firms established as the most lucrative, what areas of law then are the best and have the highest salary and bonus potential.   For a long time ‘personal injury’ was particularly lucrative because of the incredible amounts awarded in damages during an extended period.  With the proliferation of law schools, the overall ‘lowering’ of standards of typical lawyer training and with changes in the legal system to put ‘caps’ in place for certain types of injuries and awards, this is no longer always the case. 

These days some of the best areas to practice law take into consideration ‘dual expertise’ or are ‘niche categories’.  For example, Pharmaceutical law, intellectual property/patent law, corporate law, commercial real estate, tax, regulatory compliance and complex civil and commercial litigation.  With these keep in mind working in large national firms that are more likely to take on ‘class action’ or ‘big target’ cases typically have more upside than smaller local firms.  Other important factors that contribute to earnings as an attorney include years of experience, ability to bring in business, billable hours, age, gender, travel requirements/ability, law school ranking and GPA.

The trend in Legal salaries, especially for first and second year graduates seems to be towards two distinct ‘ranges.  These are clearly defined by the ranking and caliber of law school.  In recent data gathered by the Association of Legal Career Professionals, the two ranges for first year grads were between $45-$55k and between $135-$145,000.  The lower of these was for ‘average’ public sector and judicial positions and the higher for top law firms in national private firms.   This shows the disparity…and importance of attending a top tier law school and for targeting private national firms if income is a primary objective for pursuing a legal education.  For more great information about law careers make sure you visit www.TopTenLawSchools.com.

Your degree is so important because it will help you to secure a good job after you graduate from your college and it determines how smoothly your career will get started. If you choose to pursue your degree online, you need to ensure that you are getting your degree from the best online university.

There are many good online universities that offering good degree programs. But the best online university should offer online degree program that have courses to fulfill your career goal. Before you enroll into any of online degree program, request as many information as possible from online universities which offer online degree of your selected career field. Carefully review the courses offer by each program, short listed the programs that best fit your career needs.

Imagine what will happen if you just realize that your degree you use to apply a job position is a “fake degree”, even worse if it is discovered by your potential employer. It would better you put some efforts to ensure you degree you going to pursue is from a reputable online university which are issuing a “real” and valuable degree to their students. Prestige & reputable online universities are properly accredited by an accreditation agency that is recognized by US Department of Education. An online university who has gone through a proper accreditation process shows that their online degree programs are meeting a certain education standard that is accepted nationally in the job market. Check again your selected online universities against accreditation database from CHEA.org and make sure they are listed.

Famous movie stars are known by most people, same goes with famous online universities, it will well known by most companies and the bosses. Getting your degree from an online university which has created its brand and a good reputation in the job market will surely make easy for you when you enter the job market later. A degree from a reputable online university will make your resume look good and it makes easy for the hiring manager because he does not need to further verify your degree.

University of Phoenix, Kaplan University and Capella University are among the top brand online universities which are well known by most of employers. There are many online universities that are offering a career or field special focus online degree programs; for examples Chamberlain College of Nursing provides health & nursing related online degree program, Concord Law School focus on online legal / law degrees and all degrees offered by Indiana Business College are business field related degree programs.

The best online university does not necessary offers the best online degree program in the subjects. There are online universities which are not among the best if compare to those top online universities, but it has certain online degree programs that are well know and getting many good positive feedbacks in the market. You may want to consider these online universities if their best online degree programs are among your degree of choices.

Summary

Getting a degree from a well reputation online university will make easy for you when enter the job market after graduation. You need to ensure you are getting a degree from the best university so that you degree will make your resume look good and draw the maximum attention in your job application.

The online degree programs are increasing in popularity and creditability, more and more prestigious colleges and universities offer complete online degree programs taught by the same faculty who teach in their classrooms. Many online programs offers by these prestigious colleges and universities are reputable. Hence, earning a degree online can be a good option for many students, but some “diploma mills” have hurt the integrity of such programs.

If you plan to pursue a degree online, precaution steps must be taken to avoid earning a “Fake” online degree. Some “diploma mills” have sophisticated Web sites and might seem like real universities but lack college-level work and accreditation. You should always check with the Council for Higher Education Accreditation to see if their program is accredited.

Most of “diploma mills” are focus on fast production and distribution of fake degrees. They just offer credit for life experience and if you pay your fees you get your diploma. You don’t have to worry about practical experience. If you pay a little extra, you can even graduate with honors and you can even complete a degree including Doctorate degree in 5 to 7 days.

The problem arises when this life experience is not accepted by state and federal laws and you facethe problem of looking for a suitable job. Today, most employers are smart, they will check your degree against accreditation and they aware of those online colleges which “Famous” in “diploma mills”. So, make sure you are holding a legitimate degree when applying for a job position; the best way to avoid this from happening to you is to check the online degree program against it’s accreditation before your register for it.

In general, accredited colleges and universities will receive the .edu designation in their website domain name. For example, Stanford University’s web address is Stanford.edu which authenticates that they are genuine online universities. But the best way to confirm the accreditation of an online college or university is to check with the US Department of Education.

Currently, there are six higher education regional accrediting agencies which are recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. These U.S. regional accrediting agencies are:

Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Higher Education

New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Commission on Institutions of Higher Education

North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Institutions of Higher Education

Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges, Commission on Colleges

Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges

Western Association of Schools and Colleges, Accrediting Commission for Senior Colleges and Universities

There are also many other national, professional and specialized accrediting bodies that are recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. They provide accreditation, guidance and quality assurance roles for distance and online learning institutions, foreign learning institutions and training providers.

If you are planning to pursue your degree online, spend some time to check and confirm the accreditation of your selected online college or university. And make sure the organization that provides the accreditation to the college is recognized by US Department of Education. Take these precaution steps in advanced are better than regretting it later when you are holding a helpless “fake” degree.

Visit http://www.studykiosk.com/ for more information on the best listed Distance Learning Programs. Discover the ins and out of attending a “Virtual Classroom” to earn the online degree and how it can help you succeed in realizing our education goals.

Higher education is mandatory for every person that wishes a promotion and without any doubt a masters degree will help you fulfil this dream. Don’t be scared. It’s not as hard as you may think. You can choose a masters degree online program and your degree will be just one click away.

Once you earn this master degree, you’ll be able to advance at your workplace, your pay check will be more attractive and your career will receive that long-waited boost.

It can help you change your life by promoting or even by choosing a completely different career.

On the Internet you can find several online colleges and universities that can help you attend their part-time programs while doing your work. Their schedule is very flexible and you can organize your time the way you consider best.

Attending online masters degree program will save you a lot of time. You can study at home in front of your computer and you will forget all about going to school and sitting in a classroom. This means that you can choose any college you want despite its location.

You’ll see now that studying can be quite fun because it won’t be attached to that traditional routine that steels a lot of time and energy. You can forget about classmates, competition and stress just think about how to organize your online studying schedule in order to keep it from interfering with your work and your family.

If you’re determined about continuing your education using the Internet, you can choose between the following programs: Counseling and Leadership, Psychology, MBA, Law, Nursing, Paralegal, Criminal Justice, etc. You can find a degree program at almost any accredited university or college available online but you should pay attention because there are only a few universities that offer only online master degrees.

An advanced degree is far more expensive than an undergraduate one and that’s why the price of the program is very important. That’s why you should take into consideration the possibility of a financial aid such as: scholarships, grants and loans. If you’re lucky enough you can even receive tuition assistance at your job.

There’s a common belief that an online degree is not that good as a traditional one. That’s simply not true! The courses are the same, the degree is the same. There is only one difference: the college experience.

To sum up all the above, earning a masters degree online can be the best choice for you. While studying, you will learn how to improve your time management skills and to fly your way through the Internet.

I am trying to head in the right direction, but I need a little guidance. so can someone please help me. what are some schools that offer joint degrees if any.