Best Legal Studies Schools Near Gastonia, NC (2026)

Gastonia, North Carolina has 4 accredited schools offering legal studies programs, with tuition ranging from $11,700 to $34,970 per year for indexed programs. Gastonia has a population of about 81,632. Median household income is $60,554 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 27.7% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC metro area, the top-earning legal studies-related role is Lawyer at a median $157,180 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).


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

No school data available.

Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all North Carolina schools on the North Carolina legal studies page.


Gastonia is part of the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC metro area (BLS area code 16740). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to North Carolina statewide.

OccupationMedian WageSourceCOL-Adjusted (US=100)
Paralegal and Legal Assistant$59,870Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC$61,531
Lawyer$157,180Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC$161,542
Legal Secretary and Administrative Assistant$45,570Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC$46,835

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.


Gastonia at a Glance

MetricValueSource
Population81,632Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income$60,554Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+27.7%Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)97.3 (below U.S. average)BEA RPP 2024


Frequently Asked Questions

Our directory has 4 accredited schools offering legal studies programs near Gastonia. The closest is Limestone University in Gaffney, SC (29.4 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Anderson University (96.8 miles). 4 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying legal studies-related roles near Gastonia are: Lawyer ($157,180), Paralegal and Legal Assistant ($59,870), Legal Secretary and Administrative Assistant ($45,570). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with North Carolina statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.

Should I look at programs in Lincolnton instead of Gastonia?

Lincolnton, NC is 15.8 miles from Gastonia and has its own set of local legal studies programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.

Gastonia’s median household income of $60,554 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Gastonia while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and North Carolina 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 Gastonia

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

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.