Good luck @photoman whichever path you choose.

You can get work in NYC if you hustle and show that you want to work. I hire PAs all the time. I know a lot of people here groan when they hear PA (they're all the next big director DP), but if you show that you are willing to work and learn AND that you have a desired skill/career path, you can get in good with whichever department you prefer and they will help you along. ie calling you to be Camera PA, Art PA or whatever... You won't get a full time job with little or no experience without interning at that place first. Don't let the size of the market intimidate you, it should only give you courage to know that there are more opportunities. As for the degree thing, unless you want to teach one day or your life's goal was obtaining a degree, you really don't need it in TV production. This is not the case if you want to work back at the headquarters of say, HBO. If you want to be hands on out there, get the cash that would be equivalent of 1 year's tuition and go out to make your career begin. Get a cheap place in Queens or Jersey and do the work.

CFreak points to arguably the best thing about film school: You make connections.

When I got out of college I was able to find work as a camera assistant in NYC. I was also lucky, in the right place at the right time with the right skills. That's the combo that you need in this business. This was my path:

20 years ago, In college I got financial aid and was able to get a job in the school's equipment room and later was picked to work in the equipment repair shop. I learned more in those 2 jobs that helped me immediately in my career than I did in my classes. The first weeks of school we HAD to learn the cameras (16mm film) to be a little informed when letting the students check them out. I learned how to repair lights, solder cables, test microphones, and eventually batteries, cameras and lenses.

All this helped me get a recommendation from my boss to work at a professional camera rental house only for the summer, they were one of our vendors. Due to my rental house experience, I was selected to load film on a big budget 35mm student film, the keys on the crew were pros, I worked loading mags for the focus puller, who had come off being the camera trainee on "Law & Order". He trained me just as he learned from them. He took me from there to another unpaid, low budget feature. I went to school 3 days a week and worked on the film 4 days a week. The DP of that film was an established professional camera assistant and his father was an established commercial DP. I was dedicated and impressed the DP with my knowledge on the shoot. He bumped me up to pull focus when the 1st AC had started to "have enough" of this low budget film that went over schedule. After the shoot I was invited by the DP to join him prepping equipment at Panavision for a union commercial he was the camera assistant on. He then invited me onto the commercial as an unpaid trainee. He told me to go load the film into the mags, and at the end of the day he got the production manager to pay me $100 when I was just happy to have the experience. He went on to train me on more shoots. From there his friends would call me anytime they needed a non-union AC and they all encouraged me to join the union. I did and found work for years.

All of this came from my job at school, my thirst for knowledge, my sweat, hard work, luck and being in the right place, at the right time, with the right attitude.

NYC had been recovered from Hollywood strike and work was growing. Today NYC is booming in episodic TV (union work).

When I started to shoot small projects as a DP, then and really only then, did I feel I was using my education (plus all the professional experience I had from AC'ing). All the background I learned in school was now being used. It's a great base, but, not necessary to enter the business. When I was a camera assistant, word of mouth recommendations and the occasional resume request was all that was needed. If I was asked to supply a resume, it was only because they weren't sure they would hire me. Most other people on the crew had not been to film school and resented ones that did, so I didn't mention it, but, didn't deny it. If someone knew, they'd say yeah, but, you're ok, because they already knew I was a hard working guy and the preconceived notion was that film school didn't turn out hard workers.

So in your case, do everything you can to gain experience in your chosen field. If you don't know something, today you have the internet at your disposal and can learn almost anything you want to (to a certain degree). Use your work experience, the people you already know to find your next experience. What I found in freelance work it that if you're good, it's like a spider web, the bigger your web gets the easier it is to succeed. Everyone in your web has to potential to give you a warm tip.

Cold calling is the hardest. In this case try to drop off your resume personally, if you do that 10 times, the secretary might become your ally and give you a warm contact with someone hiring, or the contact might recognize your determination and forget about anyone who just emails in their resume. Do what you need to do to stand out form the rest.

Many people I went to school with I never saw again. 20 years later through facebook and LinkedIn I see that maybe 30%-50% did something in the entertainment business. Many never found a path in, or didn't want to. In NYC it's easier than in smaller places. It's even harder in some places in Europe.

Project positivity, dedication and willing-ness to work hard. Don't try to impress everyone wherever you go, have dignity and stay level headed, and you'll impress them in the long run, and, do better than those that had a moment of success but nothing to follow it up with.

I'm in NYC and I hire people. Send me your resume.

First and foremost the thing I look at is experience and reel. I also look for people who it think would be fun to work with, especially people with great attitudes.

That said, I hate to admit it, but I do look at education and if I had two candidates who were otherwise the same but one had a bachelors and the other an associates, I would choose the bachelors. But of course, it's rarely that simple.

I think several others have put forward the best idea: just go out and do it. No one is going to just hand you the keys to the job or career you want. Go out there, make videos for local businesses on a low budget, invest in gear, get experience and eventually you'll have a viable business.

But the most important aspect of this is going to be your attitude I think. Be humble. No job is beneath you. Take responsibility for your failures. Learn from them. Don't blame others. Invest in your education and your gear. Live frugally and invest in your business. Save money. Work hard, really hard...60, 70, 80 hours a week frequently. And in three to five years you'll be a superstar locally. Then it's time to become a superstar nationally.

@Kurth I'm only giving my opinion, and for me, even a BA in film, esp from a place like USC was something I'd circle on a resume. MFA is better though.

I too was once in a position to hire production people. And I disagree that degrees don't matter. I would absolutely take them into consideration. From my experience, a person with a degree from USC Cinema school was invariably someone I'd take more seriously that typical self taught guy with a resume full of music videos. Degrees aren't the only thing, but they are one of the things we'd look at. Best advice here is DO NOT mention that blackball thing. That's a kiss of death. Red flag.

OK ....hard lesson. Your degree is not worth anything. Zero. Even less your gpa ! If you had a Master's, maybe, but with experience and credits. You want a beginner to start right at the top ? ...in NYC ? Come on ! Sorry to be so blunt but I think you're not being realistic.

This is a radically declining market. Every T,D, and Harry has a camera and can take pictures. Photography and video businesses are falling like flies. Even major news corporations are laying off their newsgatherers.

You need credits, reels, resumes, recommendations, and that's just to start in some little podunk town 30 minutes in the other direction. Jobs are not given to beginners.

First ...make a few docs so you have experience and something to show. Then volunteer for free. This will require one of two strategies. Living at home....or working at McDonalds. In this world, everyone has to pay their dues !

...and a final recommendation ! Drop the story about "blackballed". It will serve you none , in fact, just the opposite !

I would check this. http://www.bwiny.org/pages/programs/patraininga.html I don't remember who told me about it, but I think is looks quite appealing for someone in your position.

Of course it's possible. But you're competing with people that have a lot more education. A two year degree isn't impressive unless you're applying for a job such as dental tech or culinary.