Best Legal Services Schools Near Salem, MA (2026)

Salem, Massachusetts has 30 accredited schools offering legal services programs, with tuition ranging from $5,352 to $66,162 per year for indexed programs. Salem has a population of about 44,241. Median household income is $85,137 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 49.6% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area, the top-earning legal services-related role is Lawyer at a median $183,350 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).


The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer legal services programs near Salem, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Salem city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.

How We Rank Schools

Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS). To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked against schools at the same credential level:

  • Graduation rate 30%
  • Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
  • Average net price (lower is better) 20%
  • Retention rate 15%
  • Fully online availability 10%

Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Salem. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

#1

North Shore Community College

Danvers, MA 6.5 miles from Salem BOC Score 46.7
  • 2 year
Graduation rate 30%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $45,391
Avg net price $9,000/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 48

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#2

Bunker Hill Community College

Boston, MA 12.8 miles from Salem BOC Score 55.2
  • 2 year
  • Campus + Online
  • Accredited
Graduation rate 16%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $47,618
Avg net price $7,818/yr
Tuition
In‑state$6,168
Out‑of‑state$11,112
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 56

Source:Accreditor: New England Commission on Higher EducationIPEDSCollege Scorecard

#3

Suffolk University

Boston, MA 13.4 miles from Salem BOC Score 59.9
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 65%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $67,506
Avg net price $29,618/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 75%
  • Programs offered: 39

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#4

Quincy College

Quincy, MA 18.8 miles from Salem BOC Score 49.7
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 25%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $52,506
Avg net price $17,126/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 63%
  • Programs offered: 32

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#5

Middlesex Community College

Bedford, MA 18.9 miles from Salem BOC Score 62.1
  • 2 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 24%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $50,651
Avg net price $2,624/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 37

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#6

Northern Essex Community College

Haverhill, MA 20.9 miles from Salem BOC Score 52.4
  • 2 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 23%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $42,862
Avg net price $6,046/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 51

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#7

Massachusetts Bay Community College

Wellesley Hills, MA 23.1 miles from Salem BOC Score 58.1
  • 2 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 27%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $52,654
Avg net price $7,169/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 51

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#8

Mount Wachusett Community College

Gardner, MA 55.3 miles from Salem BOC Score 53.3
  • 2 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 30%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $41,118
Avg net price $7,931/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 35

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all Massachusetts schools on the Massachusetts legal services page.


Salem is part of the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area (BLS area code 14460). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Massachusetts statewide.

OccupationMedian WageSourceCOL-Adjusted (US=100)
Paralegal and Legal Assistant$79,850Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH$73,730
Legal Secretary and Administrative Assistant$62,690Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH$57,886
Lawyer$183,350Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH$169,298

Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.


Salem at a Glance

MetricValueSource
Population44,241Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income$85,137Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+49.6%Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)108.3 (above U.S. average)BEA RPP 2024


Frequently Asked Questions

Our directory has 30 accredited schools offering legal services programs near Salem. The closest is North Shore Community College in Danvers, MA (6.3 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Northern Essex Community College (21.0 miles). 8 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying legal services-related roles near Salem are: Lawyer ($183,350), Paralegal and Legal Assistant ($79,850), Legal Secretary and Administrative Assistant ($62,690). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Massachusetts statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.

Should I look at programs in Peabody instead of Salem?

Peabody, MA is 3.8 miles from Salem and has its own set of local legal services programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.

Salem’s median household income of $85,137 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Salem while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Massachusetts public universities often offer reduced in-state online tuition.

How do I verify a program is accredited?

Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.


Other Programs Available in Salem

Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Salem:

Data verified: August 11, 2026. Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.