A little advice needed PLEASE!

<p>Okay, here is my situation.<br>
Last year I applied to law school for Fall 2005 and didn't get in anywhere. :( Not a surprise with my 152 LSAT and desperation to attend at the very least a tier 3. I had a 3.41 gpa from a state school at the time and applied to the following places:
Miami:Rejected
Temple: Rejected
Arizona State: Rejected
Villanova: Waitlist
Syracuse: Waitlist
Baltimore: Waitlist
Penn State: Waitlist
I finished undergrad early (3 years) with hopes of going right to law school, but obviously my plan failed. Now I'm working in an administrative position at a small aesthetics company, and have by some wierd stroke of luck had the opportunity to work directly with the CEO and company lawyer on 2 law suits we are currently facing. Both are very happy with my work and are willing to write me strong reccommendations. I'm planning on applying again for this cycle and I'm taking the LSAT again in December. Studying my ass off with hopes to score 160. I plan to make my apps complete by October 15th to help my chances. Here is a list of the places I'm applying to this time.<br>
I really need some guidance and opinions on my school selection this time around:</p>

<p>Pennstate,Villanova,Temple,Rutgers-Newark,Pace,Brooklyn,Widener,Miami,Pittsburgh,Seton Hall</p>

<p>Am I being reasonable here?</p>

<p>The ever-opinionated Aries...</p>

<p>First of all, if you were waitlisted at Syracuse, Baltimore, and Penn State, you should really apply again. The admissions officers might take your interest in their school (enough to apply two years in a row) and put a "thumb on the scale." I've heard that some schools do that - not all, but some. They like you enough to waitlist you. Get the LSAT up, apply again, show that you are serious (and another year older), and that might get you through the door.</p>

<p>Good call on sending the applications out NOW. </p>

<p>Don't replace more than one academic rec with the people from your company. Ask them if they could write a joint recommendation from you, so you would have two academic recs and one work rec. </p>

<p>As for school selection - apply to your state school, certainly. Figure out where you want to work, and apply to the strong schools in those regions. With almost any of those schools, your best job opportunities are going to be in the area. You seem to focus on Philly and New Jersey - so work with that, save yourself some time and money, and don't apply to schools that are out of your geographic area, unless they tend to send a lot of people back. Philly firms recruit mainly from Penn, Temple, and Villanova - so focus on those. Is there any way you could apply early? </p>

<p>Why not Pace, Hofstra, St. John's, or New York Law School - those are good back-ups if you don't get into Brooklyn.</p>