Paralegal Program at Kansas City Kansas Community College
Kansas City Kansas Community College appears in our ranking of the 50 Most Affordable Online Paralegal Degree Programs.
Kansas City Kansas Community College offers two paralegal programs for students who want to gain the skills needed to work as legal assistants. The college’s Associate of Applied Science (AAS) in Paralegal program includes 66 credits of work. Students must complete a Freshmen Seminar in their first semesters, which is a short course that offers them tips on taking college classes. At least 21 of the credits they take come from the general education core, which includes classes such as Intermediate Algebra, Public Speaking, and Psychology. The remaining credits in the program include paralegal courses. Students will take Introduction to Law and specialized courses, including Family Law, Real Estate Law and Wills, Trusts and Probate. The college also requires that students do two paralegal/legal internships.
The college also offers advanced paralegal certificate courses in several different fields. Designed for practicing paralegals, these programs allow students to study specialized fields of law. Students can complete an advanced paralegal certificate after taking six courses. Those courses are all available online and cost between $350 per class. Each course runs for seven weeks and asks students to spend a minimum of 45 hours each week completing their assignments.
Students can choose from a range of topics based on their interests and where they work or want to work. Some of the classes focus on defense law, including Criminal Law, Victim Advocacy and Criminal Procedure. Kansas City Kansas Community College also offers other courses such as Education Law, Business Law, Water Law, and Advanced Legal Research. Students can also take Alternative Dispute Resolution, which is a course that looks at some of the mediation methods that lawyers use.
About Kansas City Kansas Community College
Kansas City Kansas Community College is a large community college known for the opportunities it offers for students in Kansas and Missouri. Called KCKCC for short, it opened in 1923. The Public School System in Kansas City established the college because it wanted to offer practical training for high school and adult students. When the state took over the operations of community colleges in Kansas, it renamed it the Kansas City Kansas Junior College. This name would only last until the end of the 1970s, which was when it became KCKCC.
KCKCC now has a campus in Kansas City with 15 buildings, including the Performing Arts Center and Community Education Building. Some of these buildings offer additional opportunities for students such as the Campus Child Care Center. Not only does this center let education majors work with kids, but it also offers affordable childcare for enrolled students. Most of the students come from in and around the metropolitan Kansas City area, which includes several counties in Missouri. Students from those counties receive a tuition discount when they enroll in the college. KCKCC has an enrollment that includes thousands of students.
Kansas City Kansas Community College Accreditation Details
KCKCC has regional accreditation from the Higher Learning Commission (HLC). The college’s accreditation is in good standing with that agency, which means that it can provide students with the financial aid that they need. Students can also transfer credits they earn at the college to another school. KCKCC has approval from the Kansas Board of Regents to operate in the state. Other accreditation that the college holds covers its business, nursing, funeral service, respiratory therapy and physical therapy assisting programs.
Kansas City Kansas Community College Application Requirements
Students can enroll in classes for the fall term as early as the beginning of April every year. Before they can enroll, they must apply and get an acceptance letter from the college. The application offered by the college is completely free and takes less than 30 minutes to fill out. Students need to list where they went to high school, if they have a diploma, whether they took any college classes, and the names of their emergency contacts. The application also asks students to select whether they want to enroll in an on-campus or online program and the majors that interest them.
Once students complete the application, they can arrange for the college to receive their transcripts. Those with a GED need to submit a test score in lieu of a transcript. Unless the student already took a college English course and scored a C in that class, he or she will need to take a placement test. KCKCC allows students to walk into the Student Success Center without an appointment to take the test. The score on that test determines what English classes the student needs to take. Students will also need to meet with an academic advisor and set up a KCKCC email account before enrolling and registering for classes.
Tuition and Financial Aid
Tuition at KCKCC ranges based on where students live. Any student who resides in Wyandotte County, Kansas will pay just $82 per credit hour. Students from other parts of the state pay $88 per credit hour. Those who live in the Kansas City metro area and reside in one of the five surrounding counties will pay $113 per credit hour. The cost for veterans and online students is $88 per credit hour, while those taking courses while in high school pay only $80 per credit hour. Nonresidents from outside the surrounding counties pay the highest rate, which is $195 per credit hour. The college also charges a technology fee of $7 and a $15 student services fee.
Though the college charges a low tuition rate, many of its students still need financial aid. Anyone who has a GED or a high school diploma, did not default on any past student loans and meets other requirements can apply for financial aid. The federal government offers loans, Pell grants, and supplemental grants to students in need and also has a Federal Work Study program. Students earn money that they can use for school through jobs that they work on the Kansas City campus. The college offers academic and other types of scholarships through its own foundation too. Academic scholarships go to those with a GPA of 3.3 or higher who also scored 19 or higher on the ACT. Students in a paralegal studies program at Kansas City Kansas Community College can get more than one scholarship as well as federal and state financial aid.
