Business & Society

Our program in Business & Society prepares business students for the study and practice of law, with a particular emphasis on business and economic issues related to law. It also provides useful preparation for careers in, or the advanced study of, areas including public policy and urban and regional planning. Students who are interested in financial and economic developments and how they shape today's socioeconomic realities will better understand the influence of business on society, and society on business.

Employment of paralegals and legal assistants is projected to grow 15 percent from 2016 to 2026, much faster than the average for all occupations. The median annual wage for paralegals and legal assistants was $50,410 in May 2017. The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $31,130, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $81,180.

In May 2017, the median annual wages for paralegals and legal assistants in the top industries in which they worked were as follows:

1. Demonstrate understanding of key issues and the acquisition of key skills related to:

   • accounting
   • business ethics
   • finance
   • management
   • marketing
   • quantitative business tools
   • the economic environment of business
   • the international environment of business
   • the legal environment of business
   • the social environment of business

2. Integrate understandings of and skills related to functional business areas and relevant environmental contexts in the course of strategic business decision making.