Center for Advanced Legal Studies
About
Center for Advanced Legal Studies (CALS) is an accredited paralegal college located in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1987, CALS specializes in paralegal education, offering programs including paralegal certificates, an Associate of Applied Science Degree, and a Bachelor of Arts in Law and Business. The institution is recognized as a leader in paralegal education, having regained American Bar Association approval in 2026 after previously being approved from 1998 to 2014.
Admissions & acceptance rate
First-time freshman admissions: how selective the college is, and how many admitted students choose to enroll.
Graduation rate & outcomes
Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.
Pell equity
Pell recipients graduate at a higher rate than non-Pell students here — unusual and worth investigating.
Program outcomes
Federal Program Performance Data: how each program's graduate earnings and debt measure up under Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment.
Of 7 Title IV programs, 1 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 6 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.
Pass / fail distribution
- Passing1 · 14.3%
- No Data6 · 85.7%
- Failing0 · 0.0%
Severity spectrum
Tiers band programs by how far graduate earnings sit above or below the benchmark, from Critical (below −15%) through Safe (above +25%). No data means earnings were privacy-suppressed.
Earnings premium gap
Graduate earnings versus the federal benchmark, worst gaps first.
Debt vs earnings
Median completer debt against median graduate earnings, highest burden first.
Accreditation status & history
Who accredits the institution, current standing, and any past actions.
Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges
Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools
Council on Occupational Education
Action history · 5
- Jul 2025Voluntary Withdrawal ReceivedCouncil on Occupational Education
- Dec 2024Renewal of AccreditationAccrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges
- Sep 2021Renewal of AccreditationCouncil on Occupational Education
- Oct 2017Loss of Accreditation or Preaccreditation: Voluntary WithdrawalAccrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools
- Feb 2014Renewal of AccreditationCouncil on Occupational Education
Tuition & cost
What families actually pay, broken down by family income.
Net price by family income
Negative values mean aid exceeds the published cost of attendance for that income band.
Federal aid volume & trends
Pell grants and federal Direct Loan volume disbursed to students, and how they've trended.
In AY 2024–25, 222 students received $1.4M in Pell grants, alongside $1.8M in federal Direct Loans.
Pell recipients · 5-year trend
Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25
Loan awards count each loan type a student holds, not unique borrowers; one student may carry several (e.g. subsidized and unsubsidized), so the per-type figures are the reliable detail.
Student loan default rate
The share of student borrowers who default on federal loans within three years, against the national benchmark.
Of 134 borrowers who entered repayment, 0 (0.0%) defaulted within three years — below the 2.3% national rate.
Default rate vs national, by cohort
* Cohorts 2020 and later read near 0% because the federal COVID-19 payment pause (CARES Act) suspended defaults nationwide. These years reflect a national policy, not institutional performance; the 2019 cohort is the last measured under normal repayment.
Academic programs at Paralegal
Top program areas ranked by completions.
Top program families by completions
Enrollment trends & demographics
Fall headcount, 12-month unduplicated enrollment, and student body composition.
Gender split
Race / ethnicity composition
Campus safety & crime statistics
Reported on-campus crimes over the last three years, including violence and hate crimes.
3-year trend
Criminal offenses by type
By location
- Public property1
VAWA offenses
Hate crimes by bias
No hate crimes reported.
Arrests vs disciplinary referrals
Residence-hall fires
Data quality: 4 reports were later determined unfounded across the reporting period and are excluded from the totals above.
Student-faculty ratio
Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.
Paralegal vs Peer comparison
The peer institutions Paralegal selected for federal comparison reporting.
A larger shape on any axis means this institution outperforms its peers on that dimension. For acceptance rate and net price, lower raw values are inverted so "more selective" and "more affordable" appear larger.
| Carnegie | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SubjectCenter for Advanced Legal Studies | 62% | 32.8% | 271 | $10,914 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields |
| — | — | 250 | $18,091 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
| — | — | 27 | $10,030 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
| — | 78.0% | 516 | $25,171 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
| — | 91.9% | 326 | $32,368 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
| — | 67.6% | 436 | $30,387 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
| — | — | 326 | $17,375 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
| — | 95.7% | 631 | $26,640 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
| — | — | 182 | $41,410 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
| — | — | 65 | $13,358 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
| — | — | 50 | $14,834 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
| — | — | 117 | $14,970 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
Long Island Business Institute | — | 73.2% | — | $11,166 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields |
| — | — | 195 | $22,465 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
| — | — | 230 | $22,139 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
| — | — | 22 | $28,674 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
| — | — | 224 | $21,181 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
| — | — | 70 | $31,397 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
| — | — | 257 | $23,940 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
| — | — | 306 | $22,480 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
| — | — | 746 | $23,458 | Special Focus Two-Year: Other Fields | |
| Peer group median | 62% | 75.6% | 240 | $22,465 |
Institutions like Paralegal
Explore the federal data for institutions in Paralegal's comparison group.
- Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsAlaska
Alaska Career College
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment250Net price$18,091View data - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsColorado
Apex College of Veterinary Technology
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment27Net price$10,030View data - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsOhio
Athena Career Academy
Grad rate—Admit rate78.0%Enrollment516Net price$25,171View data - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsCalifornia
Carrington College-San Leandro Campus
Grad rate—Admit rate91.9%Enrollment326Net price$32,368View data - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsCalifornia
Carrington College-Stockton
Grad rate—Admit rate67.6%Enrollment436Net price$30,387View data - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsFlorida
CBT Technology Institute-Cutler Bay
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment326Net price$17,375View data - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsCalifornia
Central Coast College
Grad rate—Admit rate95.7%Enrollment631Net price$26,640View data - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsIndiana
College of Court Reporting Inc
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment182Net price$41,410View data - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsTexas
Interactive College of Technology
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment65Net price$13,358View data - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsGeorgia
Interactive College of Technology-Gainesville
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment50Net price$14,834View data - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsGeorgia
Interactive College of Technology-Morrow
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment117Net price$14,970View data - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsNew York
Long Island Business Institute
Grad rate—Admit rate73.2%Enrollment—Net price$11,166 - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsNorth Carolina
Miller-Motte College-Jacksonville
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment195Net price$22,465View data - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsGeorgia
Miller-Motte College-Macon
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment230Net price$22,139View data - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsOhio
Ohio Business College-Sandusky
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment22Net price$28,674View data - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsOhio
Ohio Business College-Sheffield
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment224Net price$21,181View data - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsCalifornia
Professional Golfers Career College
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment70Net price$31,397View data - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsCalifornia
San Joaquin Valley College-Lancaster
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment257Net price$23,940View data - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsCalifornia
South Coast College
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment306Net price$22,480View data - Special Focus Two-Year: Other FieldsTexas
Southern Careers Institute-Austin
Grad rate—Admit rate—Enrollment746Net price$23,458View data
Reports & documents (1)
Dashboards, factbooks, data dictionaries, and other reference material published by the IR office.
Frequently asked questions about Center for Advanced Legal Studies
Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Paralegal.
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