National Paralegal College: An Overview of Programs, Outcomes, and Student Experience

National Paralegal College (NPC), founded in 2003, is an independent, for-profit university committed to offering accessible, high-quality education to empower students from diverse backgrounds. Accredited by the Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC) since 2006, NPC provides various programs designed to equip students with the knowledge and skills necessary for success in the legal field.

Academic Programs and Course Design

Initially offering 10 courses and one academic program, NPC has expanded to offer seven academic programs and more than 100 courses. The college's curriculum is designed to provide a solid foundation in legal principles, research techniques, and practical skills needed to work in various legal settings.

NPC offers several programs, including:

Paralegal Certificate Program
Associate of Science in Paralegal Studies
Bachelor of Science in Legal Studies

The coursework covers a broad range of topics, such as:

Contracts
Litigation
Legal writing
Legal technology
Ethics

Sample Course Descriptions and Learner Outcomes

NPC courses are designed to be highly interactive, challenging students to apply course material through a variety of exercises. Evaluation criteria generally include required readings, essay assignments, class participation, and final exams.

Business Ethics

Dates: March 2016 - Present
Instruction: This course addresses the challenges and leadership requirements to develop and implement ethical business strategies and guidance to avoid unethical conduct. Readings, cases, and debate issues cover specific issues involving business ethics and identifying risks associated with ethical decision-making, many of which affect the reputation and success of an entire firm. The course emphasizes that business ethics is a team activity that requires knowledge and leadership at all levels of management.
Learner Outcomes: Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Describe the ethical responsibilities of managers and how ethical decision-making occurs in an organization.
- Identify ethical risks and issues in making ethical decisions in the workplace, specifically in business.
- Analyze the responsibilities of ethical leadership.
- Elucidate the relationships between ethics, social responsibility, and the sustainability of a firm.
- Describe how managers are important gatekeepers with internal and external stakeholders.
- Evaluate the social responsibility of firms.
- Examine external pressures for ethical decisions related to regulatory and self-regulated organizations.
- Formulate a particular position on a business ethics issue and defend it in a professional business manner through writing.
Credit recommendation: In the upper division baccalaureate degree category, 3 semester hours in Human Resource Management, Management, Operations Management, Marketing, Finance, or Accounting.

Business Communication

Dates: May 2008 - Present
Instruction: This course teaches students how to plan, compose, and execute effective business documents according to current professional standards. Emphasis focuses on considerations of purpose, audience, organization, and style and provides broad guidelines for composition and targeted strategies for specific kinds of documents. Special attention is given to the collection and analysis of data for use in reports and presentations. Major topics include business communication, interpersonal communication skills, the writing process, revisions, routine and persuasive messages, report planning and writing, data management, oral presentations, and employment communication.
Learner Outcomes: Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Explain the centrality of clear and efficient writing in today's business environment and the major obstacles therein.
- Adjust sentence style to improve clarity, determination, and emphasis.
- Employ gender-neutral language according to current workplace standards.
- Perform accurate audience analyses and correlate them with specific purposes.
- Create coherent outlines and apply a range of organizational techniques.
- Discuss and apply strategies for motivation and persuasion and apply them to sales letters, claims, and proposals.
- Responsibly gather and analyze data from primary and secondary sources.
- Plan and execute periodic reports, project proposals, and research proposals.
- Write reports and presentations in a collaborative setting.
- Compose effective resumes and application letters.

Compensation and Benefit Systems

Dates: August 2016 - Present
Instruction: This course explains how compensation and benefit systems have become an integral part of human resource management. There is an in-depth investigation of the principles, techniques, and strategies used in developing and implementing compensation and reward systems. The course examines both direct and indirect salary and other compensation systems. The focus is on the role of human resources in managing competitive rewards and pay plans to achieve the appropriate goals of public and private organizations. The course also discusses the interrelationship among employee performance and pay, issues of executive compensation, laws, and regulations that influence compensation.
Learner Outcomes: Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Explain theoretical concepts of compensation management as they relate to economic, legal, social, and organizational considerations.
- Define the concept of total compensation.
- Analyze the interrelation between compensation and benefit systems with the retention of qualified and skilled employees.
- Apply the tools of compensation design to attract and retain an appropriate workforce.
- Align compensation packages with organizational goals.
- Describe legal, union, and other constraints applicable to the development of compensation systems.

Global Human Resources Management

Instruction: This course examines human resource management in a global business environment. Students learn about philosophies of strategic management of people, culture, and labor systems related to different types of institutions and organizations that operate in a global context.
Learner Outcomes: Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Articulate the role of global human resources management professionals.
- Compare differences in global and domestic human resources management.
- Analyze cultural issues related to global human resources management.
- Summarize influences to organizational structures for global companies.
- Determine staffing strategies that meet global organizational needs.
- Anticipate human resources management responsibilities in mergers and acquisitions.
- Develop best practices for global human resources management.
- Contrast differences in national labor systems.
- Prepare a corporate code of conduct for a multi-national company.
- Discuss emerging issues in global human resources management.
Credit recommendation: In the upper division baccalaureate degree category, 3 semester hours in Human Resource Management, International Business, or Management.

Human Resources Management

Dates: April 2010 - Present
Instruction: This course provides students with an introductory overview of the topic of Human Resource Management (HRM), the strategic functionality of an organization. Course topics include, but are not limited to the law, governance, and rights of employees, organizational diversity, staffing, employee development, compensation and benefits, and international HRM. This course begins with an introduction to the historical and present-day role of HRM, including relevant vocabulary used in the field. Students explore the role that subtopics of the discipline play in an organization’s success.
Learner Outcomes: Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Discuss the historical and present-day importance of human resource management and its related subcategories.
- Identify, describe, and apply the theories of human resource management and apply theories to practical organizational scenarios.
- Utilize appropriate terminology when discussing the human resource management discipline.
- Critically analyze the importance of micro-, meso-, and macro-level job analysis.
- Convey the importance of human resources management compliance in relation to laws, regulations, and diversity.
- Compare and contrast the importance of training and development.
- Explain the components associated with compensation and benefits.
- Apply legal knowledge related to organizational governance to “real-world” situations.

International Business

Dates: April 2010 - Present
Instruction: This introduction to International Business course explores the pros and cons of economic theories, government policies, business strategies, and organizational structures in the global business world. Emphasis is on differences in economies; differing ethical issues facing today's executives; and the substantial role that politics play in international commerce. Major topics include Globalization; Political Economy; Economic Development; Cultural Differences; Ethics in International Business; International Trade Theory; Political Economy of International Trade; Foreign Direct Investment; Regional Economic Integration; Foreign Exchange Market; International Monetary System; Global Capital Markets; Strategy and Organization of International Business; and Entry Strategy and Strategic Alliances.
Learner Outcomes: Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Identify national differences in politics and culture.
- Illustrate the effects of ethics on international business.
- Explain international trade theory.
- Describe the political economy of international business.
- Outline the effect of foreign direct investment.
- Discuss examples of regional economic integration.
- Demonstrate how the foreign exchange markets work.
- Identify and explain the roles of the international monetary system and global capital markets.
- Show various strategies and organizational structures in international businesses.
- Identify and choose the appropriate entry strategy and necessary strategic alliances given a fact set.
- Lay out the details and differences between exporting, importing, and countertrade.
- Prove how global production, outsourcing, and logistics affect the international marketplace.
- Explain how cultural and national differences affect global marketing and Research and Development.
- Account for international business, using various countries as stakeholders.

Labor Relations

Instruction: This course studies the development of labor relations in the United States, methods of organizing employees, and the tools that organized groups in industry use to represent labor. Specifically, the course discusses the type of employees represented by unions, and the settlement process of labor disputes in a union context, as well as labor union and employer associations involved in arbitration, mediation, and conciliation. Public sector unions are considered in contrast to private sector unions. Topics include collective bargaining, trade agreements, strikes, boycotts, lockouts, company unions, employee representation, and injunctions.
Learner Outcomes: Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Delineate the key issues and events affecting the current and future status of labor relations and formulate his or her own conclusions and opinions.
- Identify, interpret, and apply the federal statutes relevant to labor-management relations.
- Discuss the impact of the principal historical developments that have influenced the evolution of unionism in the United States.
- Describe the relationship between labor and management in American business and the influence on that relationship of economic, social, statutory, and regulatory policies and systems.
- Analyze and evaluate the process of union representation, collective bargaining, contract administration, dispute resolution, as well as the roles of labor and management representatives within their respective entities.
- Explain the impact of technology tools on labor relations.
- Interpret the significance of labor relations in the context of international commerce.
Prerequisite: Human Resources Management (BUS-111).

Macroeconomics

Dates: January 2008 - Present
Instruction: This introductory course is for students with no prior background in Economics, yet have a working knowledge of High School Algebra. The instructional approach is mostly non-quantitative with some emphasis on graphic analysis. Students learn basic macroeconomic concepts on the aggregate supply and demand of outputs in the general economy, economic growth and unemployment, and the role of money and banking institutions in affecting the economy's price level and inflation. Students also study various fiscal and monetary policies used by the government to stabilize economic fluctuations.
Learner Outcomes: Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Discuss major macroeconomic issues such as economic growth, unemployment, and inflation.
- Define and measure GDP and conduct international comparisons of economic growth.
- Calculate unemployment and explain changes over the business cycle.
- Construct the consumer price index (CPI) and explain its relation to inflation.
- Identify components of the aggregate supply and demand and discuss effects of their fluctuations on the macroeconomic equilibrium.
- Explain the Classical Model including features of the general economy at full employment.
- Identify and discuss causes and measurement of economic growth.
- Examine the role of money and banking institutions and the role of the Federal Reserve in controlling money supply.
- Explain causes of inflation (demand-pull and cost-push theories and their effects on inflation).
- Use a Phillips curve to explain the relation between inflation and unemployment in the short and long run.
- Use Fiscal Policy doctrine to explain the federal budget and the effects of the income tax on markets and governmental budgets.
- Use Fiscal Polity to discuss the effects of tax on savings and investments that the Federal Government uses to stabilize the price leave.
- Challenge and defend the credibility of monetary policy, the McCallum Rule and the Taylor Rule.

Information Systems

Dates: May 2010 - Present
Instruction: This course provides an overview of information systems and their roles in modern organizations within a web-based environment.
Learner Outcomes: Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Identify the organization of information systems in general and their roles of the modern organization in a web-based environment.
- Describe how businesses generally use information systems.
- Assist in the management of both data and knowledge in managing an organization.
- Describe the infrastructure of the information technology system.
- Discuss the roles of e-business and e-commerce in today's business environment.
- Determine the extent to which wireless and mobile computing must be taken into account when managing an organization's delivery of information over the internet.
- Explain how information systems can be acquired and applied.
- Manage information systems as they relate to ethical considerations.

Admissions and Transfer Credit Policies

NPC requires applicants to have a high school diploma, G.E.D., or equivalent. The college accepts transfer credits recommended by the American Council on Education (ACE), the National College Credit Recommendation Service (NCCRS), or the Connecticut Credit Assessment Program (CCAP). However, transfer credit from noncollegiate sources may not constitute more than 25% of a student's program's credit requirements and may not replace a core course in any academic program.

Student Support and Resources

NPC offers several resources to support students throughout their academic journey.

Student Mentors: NPC employs a staff of student mentors, all graduates of NPC, to help guide new students through the study and work process. These mentors provide study suggestions and feedback on early assignment submissions.
Faculty Support: All faculty members are available for advice, encouragement, and feedback.
Recorded Lectures: All lectures are fully recorded in audio/video format, allowing students to view them at their convenience.
Library Resources: NPC partners with the Library Information Resources Network (LIRN) to provide students access to academic, scholarly, and popular research sources.
CALI Database: NPC is an institutional subscriber to the Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction ("CALI") online legal lesson database, giving students access to hundreds of lessons across many areas of law.
Voice Proctor: NPC uses Voice Proctor, a voice biometrics system, for exam security.

National Juris University (NJU)

The NPC graduate programs are administered by National Juris University (NJU), a subsidiary school of NPC. Applicants to NJU must have graduated from a college or university accredited by an agency recognized by the United States Department of Education or a foreign equivalent, with an undergraduate grade point average of 3.0 or higher (on a 4.0 scale). Students with a GPA below 3.0 may be considered for admission if they can demonstrate their ability to succeed at NJU through work experience, graduate-level education, or other outstanding achievements.

Commitment to Equal Opportunity

NPC is committed to equal opportunity in its education and admission policies. The college does not discriminate based on race, color, creed, age, gender, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, or disability. NPC aligns its policies with Title IX regulations, ensuring that it does not discriminate on the basis of sex in its education programs or activities.

Student Body and Outcomes

In 2023, National Paralegal College had a total enrollment of 438 students, with 96.8% enrolled full-time. The student body is diverse, with 26.9% White, 8.22% Hispanic or Latino, 5.94% Black or African American, 1.6% Asian, and 0.228% American Indian or Alaska Native.

Read also: Eligibility for National Awards

In 2023, 171 degrees were awarded, with 86.5% going to women and 13.5% to men. The most common race/ethnicity group of degree recipients was white (45 degrees). The most common Associates Degree concentration at National Paralegal College was Paralegal (55 degrees awarded).

Costs and Financial Aid

In 2023, the median undergraduate tuition at National Paralegal College was $7,800, which is less than the national average for Special Focus Institutions. After taking grants and loans into account, the average net price for students is $14,359. In 2023, 40% of undergraduate students received financial aid through grants, and 44% received financial aid through loans.

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