Best Legal Services Schools Near Athens, OH (2026)

Athens, Ohio has 14 accredited schools offering legal services programs, with tuition ranging from $4,612 to $67,000 per year for indexed programs. Athens has a population of about 23,211. Median household income is $37,059 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 67.1% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In Ohio, the top-earning legal services-related role is Lawyer at a median $131,020 annually (BLS, May 2025).


The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer legal services programs near Athens, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Athens 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 Athens. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

#1

Zane State College

Zanesville, OH 44.0 miles from Athens BOC Score 51.7
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
  • Accredited
Graduation rate 49%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $35,006
Avg net price $8,062/yr
Tuition
In‑state$6,006
Out‑of‑state$11,766
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 39

Source:Accreditor: Higher Learning CommissionIPEDSCollege Scorecard

#2

Capital University

Columbus, OH 62.3 miles from Athens BOC Score 45.2
  • 4 year
Graduation rate 63%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $54,143
Avg net price $22,576/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 74%
  • Programs offered: 24

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#3

Shawnee State University

Portsmouth, OH 63.7 miles from Athens BOC Score 38.9
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 40%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $39,596
Avg net price $14,381/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 72%
  • Programs offered: 47

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#4

Columbus State Community College

Columbus, OH 64.9 miles from Athens BOC Score 56.1
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 30%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $39,435
Avg net price $8,400/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 95

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#5

Clark State College

Springfield, OH 98.7 miles from Athens BOC Score 46.3
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 31%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $39,584
Avg net price $12,135/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 43%
  • Programs offered: 67

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#6

University of Cincinnati-Clermont College

Batavia, OH 113.6 miles from Athens BOC Score 58.7
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 31%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $54,810
Avg net price $13,803/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 38

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#7

Sinclair Community College

Dayton, OH 116.4 miles from Athens BOC Score 55.7
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 29%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $37,558
Avg net price $5,992/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 79%
  • Programs offered: 144

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#8

Herzing University-Akron

Akron, OH 121.8 miles from Athens BOC Score 34.4
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
  • Accredited
Acceptance rate 95%
Graduation rate 20%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $36,909
Avg net price $18,934/yr
Tuition
In‑state$13,450
Out‑of‑state$13,450
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 39%
  • Programs offered: 13

Source:Accreditor: Higher Learning CommissionIPEDSCollege Scorecard

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


OccupationMedian Annual Wage (Ohio, statewide)
Paralegal and Legal Assistant$60,420
Legal Secretary and Administrative Assistant$51,080
Lawyer$131,020

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.


Athens at a Glance

MetricValueSource
Population23,211Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income$37,059Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+67.1%Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)


Frequently Asked Questions

Our directory has 14 accredited schools offering legal services programs near Athens. The closest is Ohio University-Main Campus in Athens, OH (0.1 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is BridgeValley Community & Technical College (70.6 miles). 7 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.

Based on BLS May 2025 state wage data, the top-paying legal services-related roles in Ohio are: Lawyer ($131,020), Paralegal and Legal Assistant ($60,420), Legal Secretary and Administrative Assistant ($51,080). Wages for Athens workers will track these statewide medians, adjusted for local cost of living.

Should I look at programs in Parkersburg instead of Athens?

Parkersburg, WV is 30.1 miles from Athens 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.

Athens’s median household income of $37,059 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Athens while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Ohio 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 Athens

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

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.