Hoping to turn unexpected move into opportunity

Recently my fiance accepted a job that will require her to move from Minneapolis, MN to Sacramento, CA. Within the next year I am planning to move to CA as well and am hoping to use this as an opportunity to break into IB, VC, or PE in San Francisco (we plan to live in between and both commute - it will suck, but I'm not concerned). Before I begin this process I wanted to ask the WSO community if there is any advice on first steps and if I even stand chance at breaking in.
Currently I work in corp. finance for a fortune 500 Dow component in the Twin Cities (1yr). Before that I was an accountant for a publicly traded company also in the Twin Cities (1.5yrs). My undergrad is from a smaller wisconsin public school that has a solid reputation in the midwest, but I believe will be looked down upon in SF. As stated, I would like to break into IB, PE, or VC but I understand that I may have to take some preliminary steps to make that happen. Should I be applying directly, attempting to network via email/linkedin, or should I shoot for B-school first? Any advice is welcome.

Thank you in advance!

-Chimp on a mission

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