Best Legal Studies Schools Near Erie, PA (2026)

Updated August 11, 2026 BLS data College Scorecard On this page

Erie, Pennsylvania has 3 accredited schools offering legal studies programs, with tuition ranging from $10,479 to $31,536 per year for indexed programs. Erie has a population of about 94,156. Median household income is $43,397 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 22.3% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Erie, PA metro area, the top-earning legal studies-related role is Lawyer at a median $128,130 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer legal studies programs near Erie, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Erie 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 Pennsylvania schools on the Pennsylvania legal studies page.

Erie is part of the Erie, PA metro area (BLS area code 21500). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Pennsylvania statewide.

OccupationMedian WageSourceCOL-Adjusted (US=100)
Paralegal and Legal Assistant$56,040Erie, PA$61,582
Lawyer$128,130Erie, PA$140,802
Legal Secretary and Administrative Assistant$39,840Erie, PA$43,780

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.

Erie at a Glance

MetricValueSource
Population94,156Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income$43,397Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+22.3%Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)91.0 (below U.S. average)BEA RPP 2024

Frequently Asked Questions

Our directory has 3 accredited schools offering legal studies programs near Erie. The closest is Youngstown State University in Youngstown, OH (75.9 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is University at Buffalo (89.4 miles). 3 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 Erie are: Lawyer ($128,130), Paralegal and Legal Assistant ($56,040), Legal Secretary and Administrative Assistant ($39,840). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Pennsylvania statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.

Should I look at programs in Meadville instead of Erie?

Meadville, PA is 32.6 miles from Erie 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.

Erie’s median household income of $43,397 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Erie while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Pennsylvania 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 Erie

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

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.

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