Best Master’s in Legal Studies Programs in North Carolina
North Carolina's Commissioner of Banks provides public searches for mortgage licensees and consumer-finance companies. Those resources offer a concrete entry point for a master's in legal studies in North Carolina if you work in lending or financial operations. Start with the distinction between a business process, a legal requirement and a professional license. Then compare contracts, consumer protection and financial regulation across programs, including the written work students complete.
Wake Forest leads the North Carolina list for its local base, online delivery and named Financial Services track. FIU adds a banking-specific, live classroom option, while Florida State offers asynchronous financial regulation with adjustable enrollment. These are deliberately different ways to study lending-related legal questions; the best choice depends on whether specialization, discussion or course-load flexibility matters most.
1reviewed university is based in North Carolina. The other 2 choices are online alternatives based elsewhere. Known published enrollment exclusions are applied. Confirm authorization for your address and start date with the university. Our ranking criteria.
Compare the Legal Studies Options for North Carolina
Scroll across the table to compare the study plan and price.
University
Study Format
Credits
Displayed Degree Price
Wake Forest UniversitySchool of Law’s Online Master of Legal Studies (MLS)Based in this state
Tuition amounts use the conditions shown in each card; fees and academic years vary. Table controls change this comparison view. The full reviews below retain their original ranking order.
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Wake Forest gives North Carolina lending professionals an in-state university with a named Financial Services track in its online MLS. That creates a clear comparison with FIU's Banking concentration: ask each program how it teaches the relationship between a consumer agreement, a regulatory obligation and a compliance review. Wake Forest uses weekly asynchronous units with discussion and group assignments, so students can examine those questions without arranging their week around routine live lectures.
Where it stands out. Start here if your current work supplies financial-services problems to analyze and you can maintain regular weekly participation throughout the 30-credit degree.
What to weigh. Optional campus intensives can add contact in person, but they are not required. Florida State's adjustable course load deserves comparison if your work predictably produces uneven semester demands.
Curriculum, Admission, Tuition, and Sources +
How the Program Works
Asynchronous courses with weekly assignments
Optional campus intensives
Up to six approved graduate transfer credits
Documented Subjects and Concentrations
Business Law and Compliance
Health Law and Policy
Human Resources
Financial Services
General
Admission Details
At least one year of professional experience in any field documented on a résumé or CV
Tuition and Rate Conditions
Published tuition for the 30-credit online MLS. Add a $270 technology fee in each fall and spring term; the summer term has no technology fee. Books and materials are additional.
$1,284 per credit × 30 credits = $38,520 in base tuition.
FIU offers North Carolina applicants the most specifically named banking route on this page. Its Juris Master is built for nonlawyers, and the curriculum asks students to evaluate legal documents, assess organizational risks and communicate with legal departments. Compared with Wake Forest's Financial Services track and weekly asynchronous collaboration, FIU puts regular live teaching at the center of a one-year, 30-credit plan. That is a meaningful difference for someone who learns best by discussing difficult documents in class.
Where it stands out. Use a public Commissioner of Banks resource as a sample problem when asking whether the banking curriculum matches your lending or financial-operations responsibilities.
What to weigh. Students usually attend three days weekly, with weekday evenings and Saturday mornings. Test that timetable against your work before treating the shorter completion period as a practical advantage.
Curriculum, Admission, Tuition, and Sources +
How the Program Works
Banking, education, and health law concentrations
Live online format
Weekday evening and Saturday morning classes
Documented Subjects and Concentrations
Banking
Education
Health Law
Tuition and Rate Conditions
Published approximate tuition for the 30-credit remote Juris Master. University fees are approximately $199 per term; books and living expenses are additional.
$824.21 per credit × 30 credits = $24,726.30 in base tuition.
Florida State is the North Carolina alternative for a financial employee who needs room to change the graduate workload. Its asynchronous JM allows adjustable course loads and offers Financial Regulation and Compliance alongside other risk-focused concentrations. That contrasts with FIU's one-year live schedule. The ability to take electives across concentrations also deserves attention if a lending-related question involves contracts, personnel practices or technology as well as financial rules.
Where it stands out. Ask for a part-time plan built around the types of licensed-firm records or consumer-finance documents you encounter, then check the availability of complementary electives.
What to weigh. The published nonresident base rate calculates to $45,806.70 for 30 credits. Compare your actual scholarship terms with Wake Forest's complete quote, including how a slower pace affects each budget.
Curriculum, Admission, Tuition, and Sources +
How the Program Works
Fully online and asynchronous
Five concentrations with cross-concentration electives
Flexible semester course loads
Documented Subjects and Concentrations
Cybersecurity, Privacy, and Technology Risk Management
Employment Law and HR Risk Management
Financial Regulation and Compliance
Health Care Regulation
Legal Risk Management, Contracting, and Compliance
Tuition and Rate Conditions
2026–2027. Calculated nonresident base tuition for 30 credits. The 2026–2027 page lists $683.05 per credit for Florida residents and $1,260.10 after the conditional out-of-state scholarship. Published rates include the $30 distance learning fee.
$1,526.89 per credit × 30 credits = $45,806.70 in base tuition.
FSU explicitly permits VA education benefits and military tuition assistance for the online JM. Eligible out-of-state veterans and dependents may qualify for tuition waivers.
Compare a Live Class Calendar With Your Working Week
FIU’s Juris Master uses live online teaching with weekday evening and Saturday morning classes. For a North Carolina applicant who wants direct classroom discussion, request the full timetable before accepting a one-year completion plan. Check it against travel, closing duties, and family commitments.
The FIU banking comparison gives that schedule a curricular purpose. Use the online program rankings to distinguish scheduled teaching from asynchronous study, then ask which sessions require attendance and how missed work is handled.
Compare the Feedback You Receive on Difficult Writing
At Wake Forest, asynchronous coursework includes discussions and collaborative assignments. A North Carolina lending professional can ask how instructors respond when a student’s analysis overlooks a material fact or reaches a conclusion the evidence doesn’t support.
Compare that answer with Florida State’s financial-regulation route. Request an example assignment, its assessment criteria, and the opportunities to revise. That conversation tells you more about the learning process than counting course titles that contain banking, finance, or compliance.
Choosing Legal Study for North Carolina Lending
Use the Commissioner's public resources to identify the kinds of firms and records relevant to your work. Ask programs whether students analyze consumer agreements, financial regulation and the procedures behind a compliance review. Compare the number of specialized electives with the cost of the full degree. If your goal is a licensed lending activity, investigate that licensing path separately. An MLS is most useful to evaluate as broader legal education layered onto a clearly defined professional plan.
A lending professional may want stronger skills in reviewing documents, researching a requirement or explaining a policy to colleagues. Those goals are easier to evaluate than an assumed promotion. If you're new to financial services, include operational experience and any specific licensing requirements in your comparison of education options.
Compliance Officer Pay in North Carolina
10th percentile pay
$45,690
Median annual pay
$78,500
90th percentile pay
$131,180
North Carolina has an estimated 11,320 compliance officer jobs. The occupation’s median annual wage is $78,500, with the 10th and 90th percentiles at $45,690 and $131,180.
BLS OEWS, May 2025, SOC 13-1041. Occupation wages cover workers with varied education and experience; these are not MLS graduate outcomes or starting salary estimates. BLS compliance officer wage data.
Each ranking card contains the university sources for its curriculum, admission, delivery, and tuition details.
Questions About Legal Studies in North Carolina
Which MLS Courses Fit North Carolina Lending Work?+
Look at consumer protection, contracts, financial regulation and legal research. Ask for assignments involving agreements or compliance analysis, and compare the courses with the actual work you want to do.
Does an MLS Replace Mortgage Licensing in North Carolina?+
Don't treat a degree as a license. The Commissioner of Banks maintains separate licensing resources. Check the requirements for your intended activity and evaluate the MLS for the additional legal knowledge it provides.
