In a bid to professionalise the paralegal sector and contribute to the transformation of the legal profession as well as higher education curricula, CPUT will from 2018 be offering the new Bachelor of Paralegal Studies degree.
The degree, being the first of its kind in the country, is designed to consolidate the fragmented approach to paralegal education in South Africa and bring comprehensive paralegal education firmly within the domain of higher education.
The Unit for Applied Law at CPUT obtained approval for the degree from the Department of Higher Education and Training as well as the Council on Higher Education.
Whilst preparing students for existing and future paralegal careers, aimed at meeting the primary legal needs of individuals and communities, the academic programme will also assist with the current challenges in the country’s legal education by providing a conduit to the LLB degree that serves as both a preparatory and screening mechanism for prospective candidates for the private legal profession, says the unit’s HoD, Adv Noleen Leach.
The programme rests on four core pillars of legal education, namely Private Law, Public Law, Mercantile Law and Formal Law. Formal Law, for the most part, has been integrated into the other three pillars where appropriate, and the work-integrated components woven into the programme.
The programme takes three years to complete on a fulltime basis and five years part-time in the absence of any credit transfer or recognition of prior learning.
An APS score of 30 points is required to apply for the degree, but for more information about entry requirements contact Adv Leach on leachn@cput.ac.za or 0219596418.
Written by Kwanele Butana
News desk
News desk writes, collates and publishes relevant news for Yiba.
