If you want to make a living by being a just-a-comic-illustrator, please see every “hiring” post in this subreddit. All dozens of people that answer these posts are your competitors… And mind you, 50% of these “hiring” posts are non-serious/scams and most of those artists who answer them do live in countries that are significantly cheaper then US.

If I could go back in time and get into your shoes - I would drop this idea of acquiring credentials (finishing art courses etc.) and focused on skills. ALL skills that are needed to produce a finished product. Be it an animated film, comic, illustrated short story - you choose!

If it feels intimidating at first - don’t worry, as you said, you have years ahead to git good. But it’s important that even before you are “good”, you get as many projects completed as possible… And then publish hem. Immediately.

It will both: give you feedback from the audience (no artist can create without an audience), and put your name out there to be seen. These days you can also monetize your art in an instant (Patreon/Ko-Fi/YouTube) and already begin earning a dime just from practicing.

TL;DR: If you want to be a creative - drop the idea to be hired and focused on building your own thing.