What are the best secretarial courses to take?
Asked by Alana
My work (a solicitors) is prepared to fund a course for myself and so I want to do an all round official secretarial course recognized by most employers in the UK (I'm unsure about following the route of Legal Secretarial training as it may restrict my options). Are there any in particular that stand out on a CV? I have already got my ECDL and NVQ 3 in business admin if that give an idea to what I'm looking for. Thanks

Best Answer:
Reminder: We are in a world-wide Recession. Warning. Jobs in the field of Law are drying up fast! This is just not a good field to invest time and/or money into. This is a SHRINKING vocational field, so it is not a good idea to invest in it. Many reasons. Many people today (mistakenly) think they can do their own legal work, thanks to the Internet. Also, we simply already have way too many Legal Professionals - we have an absolute glut!! ("Legal Professionals" includes, but is not limited to: Attorneys/Lawyers/Solicitors, Paralegals, Legal Assistants, Legal Secretaries, Bailiffs, Court Reporters, etc, etc) Regarding being a Legal Secretary: Employers (usually law firms) in the field of Law today want employees with Bachelors degrees from traditional colleges/universities. Those "certificates" you see advertised aren't worth the paper they are printed on - they are generally scams. (I found this out the hard way.) The present employer you are with may value this type of course, but ask yourself if it would be accepted in the general field of Law? Even if you finish law school, you won't be able to find a job when you are done. Since this vocational field is shrinking, many new attorneys/lawyers are, themselves, having to work "down" as Paralegals, Legal Assistants, Legal Secretaries, Bailiffs, Court Reporters, etc, etc, to simply try to keep some of their bills paid <<this would be your competition. And the competition is fierce!! Now... the law schools know this, but they won't tell you the truth >that the job market/economy is just saturated with way too many Legal Professionals. Instead the schools will feed you a fairytale and will lie to you. The root of the problem is we have too many law schools. We are in a recession, and the schools are fighting for their own survival - they will tell students anything to get to the students' money. (Which is why they won't tell you the truth about the job market for the field of Law.) And these schools continue to recruit and churn out even more graduates............. If you don't believe me, then just do a search here on Yahoo Answers to see what other posters are saying about the current status of the field of Law. Call some local law firms - ask to speak to the Manager of Human Resources - ask them if they are hiring; ask them what they think about job availability in the field of Law.................. In the book "So You Want to be a Lawyer?" by Marianne Calabrese and Susanne Calabrese (ISBN 0-88391-136-1): "The United States has more lawyers than any other country in the world. About 38,000 students graduate >each year< from the 200+ law schools in the United States. The competition is very keen for jobs and clients." - Even Associate Justice Antonin Scalia (who served on the U.s. Supreme Court for more than 20 years) says there are too many lawyers. (9/14/2008) Check out these websites: http://informeddecisionmaking.blogspot.com http://calicocat.com/2004/08/law-school-big-lie.html If you want a job when you are done with your studies, consider and look into the field of >>>Healthcare! I spoke to a career counselor from Jobs and Family Services, and HE told me that this is where the jobs are, and future job availability! and scholarships! Good luck. (This was intended as personal opinion, and not intended to be used as legal advice.)
life been there - done that have actually worked in the field of Law for twelve years also actually am an employee of a law school, so I KNOW and see (too much?!?) don't have time to watch those TV law shows - the couple that I did watch weren't realistic, at all TV glamorizes the field of Law - do your research first! - the field of Law is actually a lot of paperwork and politics - and law school is VERY expensive, so know what you are getting into wish someone would have warned ME sooner so now I TRY to warn and help others (that actually want to know, will listen and not get defensive) I am simply tired of watching students getting ripped off by law schools
Answered by mailaccount63