Jobs are really going to depend on the local market. Nearly all the paralegals at my old firm were fabulous secretaries that gradually did more and more paralegal type work. Some went to school part time to supplement their on the job knowledge. We rarely hired a paralegal from the outside, and the ones we did hire were hired because of their experience in a particular field.

Good luck! Feel free to pm me if you have any questions. I am a retired IP lawyer.