Current 2nd-Year Recruiting Woes

Ignore my profile title. 2nd-year analyst at a well-known MM bank, industrials coverage (non-NYC). 3.7 GPA from a target school.

I've made it to case study and final rounds a few times across megafund private credit and other buyside roles, but haven't converted. I think I've cast too wide a net (private credit, PE, HFs), partly because I've started to believe I'm running out of good options in credit. I'm also sometimes not hearing back after sending my resume to headhunters following their initial outreach.

• Final round at a large credit fund: never heard back.
• Case study rounds at a couple of MF direct lending groups: both passed after the case study. I thought I'd done really well on one (and that was the feedback during the interview) and was surprised.
• I've started taking traditional PE processes and am out of my comfort zone on the timed modeling tests. I haven't prepped for them, and honestly I wasn't hoping to go into PE in the first place but keep getting lured in by exciting names / opps.
• Headhunter-led prep hasn't matched how the interviews were actually run.

Questions:

1. For those who passed MF direct lending case studies, what did you do to prepare?
2. Is a summer 2027 start still realistic, or should I plan on a third year?
3. How do you handle headhunters pitching everything? Should I blanket ignore good opportunities in PE / HF and just focus on credit?
4. How do you handle constant rejection & the feeling that you are not competitive enough?

Overall feeling a bit lost, and I hate missing opportunities that feel within reach (and offer a door out of IB). Any advice appreciated.