Secondary Admission Requirements

Students who wish to pursue a Paralegal Studies (Legal Assistant) major must apply for admission to the program.

Students may be admitted to the program in the fall or winter terms. Applications for a winter term are due by Dec. 1 of the preceding fall term. Applications for a fall term are due by April 1 of the preceding winter term.

Program admission criteria are:

• Admission to the University as an undergraduate or second bachelor’s degree candidate.
• Completion of WRTG 121  with a grade of B or higher.

Students applying for admission to the program as second bachelor’s degree candidates must present evidence of having completed an acceptable college-level English composition course with a grade of B or higher. A remedial course is not an acceptable college-level English composition course

• Completion of LEGL 211 - Introduction to the Legal System  with a grade of B- or higher.
• Completion of LEGL 304W - Legal Writing, Research and Analysis I  with a grade of C+ or higher.
• A cumulative GPA of at least 2.5 on a 4.0 scale.

Students satisfying these criteria are eligible to apply for admission to the program, but admission is not guaranteed.

School Information

Technology and Professional Services Management, College of Technology

Susan Gregory, Ph.D. | Interim Director | 122 Sill Hall | 734.487.0854 | sgregory5@emich.edu

Advisor Information

Undergraduate and Second Bachelors Advising | 122 Sill Hall | 734.487.1161 | paralegal_emu@emich.edu

Program Retention Policy

In addition to secondary admission requirements, students are required to:

• Complete each program core “LEGL” course with a minimum grade of C.

If a student earns lower than a C in any program core course, the student will be allowed to repeat the course twice. If the student fails to earn a C or better in the repeated courses, the student will be dismissed from the program. Please note LEGL 211  (“B-“) and LEGL 304W  (“C+”) require a higher minimum grade

• Maintain a cumulative GPA of at least 2.5 on a 4.0 scale (See note below)
• Maintain a GPA within the major of at least 2.5 on a 4.0 scale (See note below)

A student whose cumulative GPA or cumulative major GPA falls below 2.5 will be placed on program probation for the next succeeding term. If the student fails to raise his or her cumulative GPA, cumulative major GPA or both to 2.5 or higher with the grades earned during the probationary term, the student will be dismissed from the program. For purposes of this policy, a student who is placed on program probation as the result of a deficient GPA at the close of a winter term will have until the close of the next fall term to raise his or her GPA to 2.5 or higher.

General Education Requirements:

For specific requirements, see General Education  or print a worksheet .  

Major Requirements: 75 hours

Minor Requirement:

This major does not require a minor.

Program Total:

Students must earn a minimum total of 124 credits at the 100-level or above.

Beginning in Fall 2022, all baccalaureate degree programs for all undergraduates (regardless of catalog year) will require a minimum of 120 credit hours for completion.

Critical Graduation Information

Each undergraduate student will be responsible for the fulfillment of the requirements or their equivalents of the Eastern Michigan University catalog in force at the time of their initial registration at a college or university or a subsequent catalog including the one in effect at the time of their graduation.

In the event an undergraduate student does not complete the degree requirements within seven years of the date of their original registration at a college or university, the student may be required to have their credits re-evaluated by the academic department(s) of their major/minor in keeping with catalog requirements in force during the year of their graduation.

The following are minimum requirements for all bachelor’s degrees awarded by Eastern Michigan University. Some majors and minors require more than the minimum in one or more of the areas below; students are urged to consult the online catalog for the requirements of their particular programs.

• Earn a minimum total of 124 credits at the 100-level and above. Courses with numbers below 100 will not be counted toward this degree requirement. At most 8 credit hours of physical education (PEGN) activity courses will be counted toward this requirement.
• Meet the requirements of the General Education program (see information below).
• Complete a Writing Intensive (GEWI) Course in your major.
• Earn a minimum of 60 credits from a four-year college or university; courses taken at community colleges cannot be used to meet this requirement. (Some formal program-to-program articulation agreements modify this requirement. See specific agreements for details.)
• Earn a minimum of 30 credits from courses taken at EMU.
• Complete 10 of the last 30 hours for the degree from courses taken at EMU.
• Have a minimum of 30 unique credit hours in their major and 20 unique credit hours in their minor for a total of at least 50 unique credit hours between them. Some majors that require 50 or more hours themselves do not require a minor; students should check requirements of the selected major in the undergraduate catalog to see if a minor is required.
• Earn no more than 60 credit hours in one subject area (prefix). Credits in excess of the 60 maximum will not be counted toward the minimum of 124 credits required for a bachelor’s degree.
• Earn the minimum number of credits in 300-level and above courses in each major and minor as specified below - these credits must be earned in distinct courses; that is, no course can be used to fulfill this requirement in more than one major or minor.
  • Earn a minimum of 6 credits in 300-level or higher courses at EMU in each minor
  • Earn a minimum of 9 credits in 300-level or higher courses at EMU in each major that requires a minor.
  • Earn a minimum of 15 credits in 300-level or higher courses at EMU in each major that does not require a minor
• Transfer credit will be awarded for courses taken at colleges and universities that are accredited by one of the recognized regional accrediting bodies only if the courses are college-level (equated to 100-level or above at EMU) and the student earned a “C” (or 2.0 on a 4 point scale) or better. Transfer credit may be awarded on a case-by-case basis for college-level courses in which a “C” (2.0) or better was earned at institutions outside the U.S. or at non-accredited U.S. institutions; the internal review of such courses is conducted by individual departments/schools within EMU, and additional documentation may be required. Please note: EMU awards only credit for transferred courses; grades are not used in the calculation of an EMU GPA.
• Earn a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0 in courses taken at EMU in order to graduate. In addition, a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.0 must be reached in each major and minor. Only courses taken at EMU and those applied to a student’s major or minor will be used in the calculation of their major and minor cumulative GPAs. (Note: some programs may require a higher GPA - check with your program advisor.)

General Education Requirements EMU’s General Education Program requires students to choose from a menu of approved courses in several different areas; do not assume that other courses in the same department or with similar names will fulfill these requirements. A detailed description of General Education requirements is available in the General Education  section of the catalog.

Students who transferred to EMU may have modified general education requirements based on Michigan Transfer Agreement (MTA) or articulation agreements; consult your academic advisor for additional information.