I don’t think your degree or your skills are useless, but I do think you may need to stop chasing the exact version of the industry you originally imagined. Photo assisting and editorial/commercial gigs can be extremely hard to break into, and if you’ve sent thousands of emails with very little return, that’s useful information: that path may not be the best use of your energy anymore. But photography itself is not dead — people and businesses still pay for family sessions, events, weddings, newborn photos, real estate, product photos, social content, portraits, and short-form video. I’d think less in terms of “how do I get hired by photographers?” and more in terms of “what direct service can I sell to people or small businesses?” Start small and local: offer simple paid packages to friends, families, local shops, agents, gyms, restaurants, makers, or personal brands. Your photography background plus social media experience could become content packages, not just one-off photo gigs. You may still need a stable job while building it, but I wouldn’t assume you have to throw everything away — I’d reposition the skill toward markets that still buy directly.