I spent 3 years working in politics and 3 years in law school before going the mod route, so my advice would be to just throw yourself into a mod project and work your ass off until somebody notices.
Apply for specific jobs when your portfolio of work is ready, not before -- ideally after making some connections in the game business through conventions, modding, forums, whatever.
Bottom line: If you are passionate about something and you pursue that something then you will eventually achieve something worth achieving. In other words, fight for your dreams and be ready when your dreams fight back.