Transfer
of Course Policy
In order to transfer legal specialty
courses from another institution the following policy will be observed:
1. The
other institution must be accredited by a recognized regional accrediting
agency and approved by the American Bar Association.
2. The
course description must be comparable to the course description at Santa Ana
College.
3. The
unit value or hours must be comparable to the unit value at Santa Ana College.
4.
Students may not substitute any course for Para 248 Advanced Research and
Writing, Para 121 Ethics or Para 297 The Professional Paralegal.
5.
Students must submit the Santa Ana College “Petition to substitute or waive
major requirements for degrees and certificates” form along with the course
syllabus from the instructor at the other institution, a copy of the course
description at the other institution and a certified copy of the student’s
transcript showing a grade of C or better. A credit/no credit or pass/fail
grade will not be accepted.
6. The
Department director/chair shall review the submitted material and any other
material available to determine if the coursework meets the same rigor and
preparation as the Santa Ana course work.
7. The
decision of the Department director/chair shall be final.
8.
Students are not allowed to test out of or waive legal specialty courses with
the following exception: Students who are experienced the use of legal
application software may test out of Computers in the Law Office; however they
are required to take a substitute course such as Advanced Microsoft Office in
order to receive an approval of the waiver petition. If a student feels
they will not benefit from an elective course due to their experience, they are
advised to take a different elective.
Students must complete at least 12
semester units in legal specialties at Santa Ana College, including Para 100,
Para 101, Para 121, Para 248 and Para 297 in order to receive a degree from the
college.
Students must petition the Paralegal
Department Director/Chair for consideration for credit of legal specialty
courses and must provide relevant transcripts and course descriptions.
The student shall submit the form to the business division office.
The Paralegal Department
Director/Chair, in consultation with the dean will approve or deny the form and
forward to the graduation office.
Paralegal
Degree Policy on General Education Requirements
The Paralegal program at Santa Ana
College is approved by the American Bar Association. The American Bar
Association has specific guidelines the program must meet in order to be in
compliance with the guidelines and to maintain the program approval.
Students who graduate with a degree in Paralegal Studies or who meet the
qualifications for a paralegal certificate must meet the following general
education criteria.
1. The
student must satisfy the general education requirements under either plan A,B
or C as set forth in the College Catalog. These units may be used to
satisfy section 2 below.
2. The
student is required to have a minimum of 18 semester units of general
education that meet the criteria of the American Bar Association as set forth
below:
1. A general education course is an
academic college-level course designed to give students a broadly based liberal
arts education. This definition of general education may differ from the
definition adopted by a particular institution or a particular accrediting
agency.
a. A general education course
ordinarily provides the students with critical reasoning and writing skills.
b. Such courses are usually in the
areas of social and behavioral science, English composition and literature,
foreign language, mathematics, humanities, natural science, and the fine arts.
c. Courses specifically designed to
develop professional, vocational, and technical skills or that are remedial in
nature are not classified as general education.
d. Examples of courses that are not
classified as general education include, but are not limited to, physical
education, performing arts, accounting, computers, technical writing, business
mathematics, business English, keyboarding, and business law.
2. Within the requirement for 18
semester credits or the equivalent of general education course work, students
must take courses in at least three disciplines, such as social sciences,
natural sciences, mathematics, humanities, foreign language, and English.
1. Courses
listed in the Santa Ana College Catalog that meet the requirement of part 1
which may not be used to satisfy part 2 include but are not limited to the
following:
All computer science courses, E.S.
Professional 140, Fashion Design Merchandising 103, all courses listed under
Plan A F2 and Plan B E2.
The student shall be required to
certify with the graduation department, completion of courses that meet the ABA
definition of general education.
Santa
Ana Paralegal Department Policy on Credit by Examination and Pass/Fail.
No paralegal course may be taken by
credit by examination with the following exception:
The department chair at his/her sole
discretion may allow a substitution for the Paralegal 120 Computer in the Law
Office Course. If a student is able to demonstrate to the department
chair, to the department chair’s satisfaction, that the student has the skill
sets being taught in the class, then the student may enter into an education
plan to satisfy that requirement. The education plan will include one or
more advanced Microsoft class (Word, Excel etc.)
Policy
on Course Substitution/Waiver Petitions
It is the departmental policy to
deny petitions to waive or to substitute program requirements. The course
work that is outlined in the program is approved by the advisory committee, the
department, division and college curriculum councils. All students are expected
to complete the entire course of study in order to be properly prepared to
obtain gainful employment in the legal profession.
In the event a student has a degree
from an accredited institution that is not generally accepted by Santa Ana
College, then on a case by case basis the department will review the petition
and determine if the student has met the 18 units of general education required
for the certificate.
PRODEDURE: The student shall submit the Petition to substitute or waive
major requirements for degrees and certificates to the department chair’s
office in A 107-13. Included with the petition shall be attached a sealed
official transcript from the issuing institution, a copy of the official
transcript. The student shall supply the department with a list of
courses that meet the general education requirements of the American Bar
Association, a copy of the catalog entry for each course and a copy of the
course syllabus. The student shall add their email address to the
petition. Once the department has reviewed the petition the student will
be informed via email of the department’s decision.
In the event a student is working
under a catalog that has a course required (Para 143 and 144 for example) and
said courses are no longer being offered, the department will review the
petition and allow for the substitution of an appropriate Paralegal course
(Para 145 for 143 and 144.)
PRODEDURE: The student shall submit the Petition to substitute or waive
major requirements for degrees and certificates to the department chair’s
office in A 107-13. The petition shall state which course is no longer
offered, such as Para 143 or 144 and the course to be substituted, which in
this case would be the new course Para 145. The student shall include the
email address for notification of the department decision.