Getting Discouraged

I'm starting to get discouraged and need some advice. I graduated from a smaller state school in PA and have been working in an operations role in the Philadelphia area for the last 9 months. I was unable to land anything despite many cold calls, emails, and applications. I spend a year interning at a smaller AM doing equity research and loved the experience. I really sought this place out and it was a great team where I got a lot of exposure. Like everyone else, I have a real passion for the industry and want to land somewhere I can really continue to learn and gain experience. Im well aware of the disadvantages with my location and lack of pedigree, so I've tried beefing up my skills and looking for every edge. The firm I interned at has a small team and doesn't make any offers. I had been interviewing with a few other places recently but didn't make it through the final rounds.

I'm starting to question what options I have and what I should do next. I recently registered for the December CFA lvl 1 exam and am still working on networking on LinkedIn. The operations role is completely mindless, depressing, and in no way satisfying. It doesn't pay well at all but I still make time to follow some of the companies I worked on during my internship as well as keep my modeling skills sharp.

Anyone have any advice as to what I should do? How others made it in? Really anything because I'm starting to lose hope.

Thanks