Immigration paralegals assist attorneys with law-related activities, such as legal research, writing legal briefs, and interviewing witnesses. To become an immigration paralegal, one needs a college degree and paralegal training. It is also helpful to learn a foreign language. Certification can help find higher-paying jobs.
Paralegals cannot give legal advice; however, they assist attorneys with law firm activities, trial preparation, or any other law-related activities. For example, immigration paralegal work may involve conducting prospective client intake interviews, legal research, writing legal briefs, legal writing such as memos about potential cases or other law-related documents, or interviewing witnesses. Helping clients obtain the necessary documents to apply for citizenship is another task that immigration paralegals can do. If you want to become an immigration paralegal, you will generally need a college degree and paralegal training.
You can go either direction if your goal is to become an immigration paralegal. One option is to go to college and earn a specialized bachelor’s degree in any subject and then complete a postgraduate paralegal certificate in an American Bar Examination (ABA) approved program. Or, you could attend a college that already has an ABA-approved paralegal program and earn a bachelor’s degree specializing in paralegal studies. In addition to paralegal education, it can be helpful to learn a foreign language, as immigration paralegals often work with people whose first language is not English.
ABA-approved paralegal programs are not specialized programs. In other words, individuals who want to become an immigration paralegal do not become an immigration paralegal specialist while in the paralegal program. Instead, for aspiring paralegals, majoring in immigration work comes after completing paralegal studies.
During paralegal training, if you want to become an immigration paralegal, you must become expert in your understanding of the legal system. In addition, you must develop good legal research and writing skills, as you must be able to find relevant information and draft documentation as required by your supervisor. You should also be able to write letters to clients or potential clients.
Typically, if you want to become an immigration paralegal, you would apply for a job at an immigration law firm during your final semester of paralegal studies. Working with your school’s career services department is one way to find a job; however, there are also jobs listed on the ABA website, as well as paralegal jobs that may be listed in the jobs section of the local newspaper. Also, there are sites that specialize in listing paralegal jobs and sometimes immigration paralegal jobs.
Another thing to keep in mind is that in addition to paralegal school, it can be helpful to get paralegal certification. For example, you can become a Certified Legal Assistant (CLA) as a result of passing an exam held by the National Association of Legal Assistants (NALA). Certification is not yet required in all locations; however, having certification can help you find illegal immigration jobs with higher levels of responsibility and pay.
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