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What Can You Do With a Legal Studies Degree? Jobs (2026)
Key takeaway: A legal studies degree qualifies you to work in law, not to practice it. Bureau of Labor Statistics May 2025 national medians are $55,570 for legal secretaries and administrative assistants, $62,890 for paralegals and legal assistants, and $159,670 for lawyers, but that last figure describes people who have completed a law degree and been admitted to a state bar, which a legal studies degree does not provide.
Jobs you can get with a legal studies degree
Legal studies programs teach the legal system from the inside: civil procedure, contracts, torts, legal research and writing, evidence, ethics and professional responsibility, and the document and case-management practices law offices actually run on. That training maps onto the support and professional roles below, and it is also a common undergraduate foundation for applicants to law school.
View the data behind this chart
| Occupation | Avg. annual openings |
|---|---|
| Paralegal and Legal Assistant | 39,300/yr |
| Lawyer | 31,500/yr |
| Legal Secretary and Administrative Assistant | 19,600/yr |
| Occupation | Median annual wage |
|---|---|
| Lawyer | $159,670 |
| Paralegal and legal assistant | $62,890 |
| Legal secretary and administrative assistant | $55,570 |
Wage source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS national medians. Figures are national medians across all employers and experience levels; actual pay varies widely by practice setting, with large private firms, government offices, and small practices differing substantially.
Lawyer. Lawyers advise clients on their rights and obligations, draft and negotiate contracts and other instruments, prepare pleadings and motions, conduct discovery, argue in court and before agencies, and take responsibility for the legal strategy in a matter. The role carries duties no support position does, including the authority to give legal advice, appear on a client’s behalf, and sign filings, along with the professional liability that comes with them. Entry requires a law degree from an accredited school plus admission to a state bar, ordinarily by examination and a character and fitness review. The $159,670 median reflects that credentialed population, not legal studies graduates generally.
Paralegal and legal assistant. Paralegals do substantive legal work under an attorney’s supervision: researching statutes and case law, drafting pleadings, discovery requests, contracts, and correspondence, organizing and reviewing document productions, managing case files and deadlines, interviewing witnesses, and preparing exhibits and trial binders. In litigation-heavy practices they carry real responsibility for keeping a case on schedule. What they cannot do is defined by every state’s unauthorized-practice-of-law rules: no giving legal advice, no setting fees, no representing clients, no appearing in court. This is the occupation a legal studies degree most directly prepares you for.
Legal secretary and administrative assistant. Legal secretaries keep a practice functioning: preparing and formatting court documents to local rules, managing electronic filing, maintaining calendars and statute-of-limitations deadlines, handling client communication and billing entries, and administering files and records. The role demands precision with procedural requirements, because a rejected filing or a missed deadline has consequences beyond inconvenience. It is the most accessible of the three positions and a common entry point into a firm for someone who later moves into paralegal work.
What the degree level changes
This is the field where being precise about credentials matters most, so start with the hard boundary. A bachelor’s in legal studies does not license you to practice law, and neither does a master’s in legal studies. Practicing law in the United States requires a Juris Doctor from a law school approved for that purpose plus admission to a state bar, which ordinarily means passing the bar examination and clearing a character and fitness review. Every state prohibits the unauthorized practice of law, and the line applies to legal studies graduates working in firms just as it does to anyone else: you may research, draft, and organize under an attorney’s supervision, but you may not advise clients, quote fees for legal services, or appear on someone’s behalf.
Within those limits, the degree levels do useful work. A bachelor’s is the credential most firms and corporate legal departments look for when hiring paralegals and legal assistants, and it also prepares legal secretaries and administrative staff to move into substantive roles. It is likewise a well-established pre-law major, though law schools admit from every undergraduate field and weigh grades and admissions test scores far more than major.
A master’s in legal studies is designed for professionals who need legal fluency without a license, compliance officers, contract administrators, human resources and risk professionals, healthcare administrators, and government program staff who read regulations and negotiate agreements daily. Used that way it is genuinely valuable. Used as a substitute for a law degree it will disappoint, because no employer can authorize a master’s holder to do what only a bar-admitted attorney may do. If practicing law is the goal, plan for the JD; if working alongside lawyers or managing legal risk inside an organization is the goal, these degrees are built for it.
Common questions
What jobs can you get with a legal studies degree?
Most directly, paralegal and legal assistant roles, and legal secretary and administrative assistant positions in law firms, courts, corporate legal departments, and government agencies. The same training supports compliance, contract administration, and regulatory support work, and the degree is a common pre-law foundation for students who intend to apply to law school.
How much do legal studies majors make?
Using Bureau of Labor Statistics May 2025 OEWS national medians, legal secretaries and administrative assistants earn a median of $55,570 and paralegals and legal assistants $62,890. The lawyer median of $159,670 applies to licensed attorneys who hold a law degree and bar admission, so it should not be read as a legal studies degree outcome.
Can you be a lawyer with a legal studies degree?
No. Practicing law requires a Juris Doctor plus admission to a state bar, ordinarily through the bar examination and a character and fitness review. A bachelor’s or master’s in legal studies is useful preparation and useful on its own terms, but it confers no license and no authority to advise clients or appear in court.
Do you need a master’s in legal studies?
Not for paralegal or legal support roles, where the bachelor’s is the standard credential. A master’s fits professionals in compliance, contracts, human resources, healthcare, and government who need to work confidently with law and regulation without becoming attorneys.
Is a legal studies degree worth it?
It is worth it if your target is paralegal, compliance, or contracts work, or if you are using it as a pre-law foundation with the JD already in your plan. Compare the cost against those specific outcomes on the is a legal studies degree worth it page.
Keep exploring
- Start at the online legal studies degrees hub, then compare levels: bachelor’s and master’s.
- Check legal studies programs by state, and weigh the decision on the is it worth it page.
- Considering a related field? Compare paralegal studies, legal services, and criminal justice.
Data verified: August 12, 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.
Back to Best Online Legal Studies Degrees: Programs & Careers (2026)