I will be graduating this fall with a bachelors in Information Technology/Networking. I currently reside in rural Arkansas which has presented some problems for me as far as getting my career started.

First, because the area I live in is so rural, I have not had opportunity to gain IT experience during college. I' ve worked as a sales clerk at Office Depot the past 4 years because it was the best thing I could find in this little town.  How much will this hurt my chances?

Second, I want to get away from this small town for personal reasons. I am concerned that big city employers will only hire locals and will not hire somebody from out of state. How true is this and how can I overcome it?

I' ve realized I have some huge mountains to climb because of my situation. Does anybody have any advice for me as to how to do this?

Thanks for any replies,