My resume is on all the 3 major sites but doesn't seem to be getting any hits.

There is a site called www.resumerabbit.com which, for a fee, will shoot your resume to, they claim, 80 different job websites. There are other sites such as this. Beyond.com also does this but to a lesser degree.

I am looking for a job that is more challenging with more responsibility--I feel I am past the 'entry-level'--I've been stuck in the same type of job for too long & it's time to move on to bigger & better things.

The receptionists at almost all companies do much more than sit all day and talk on the phone. Depending on the industry, the receptionist's duties include scheduling, logging in faxes, light clerical typing. I have read advertisements for receptionist for CPA firms who do light bookeeping and/or payroll.

Some receptionists are considered entry-level, but they are certainly a step up from call center and there is more opportunity for advancement because you are further "in the loop".

Also, so many of the job requirements listed on here & elsewhere say they require a bachelor degree--others say it's preffered but not required.

Send in your application anyway, if you meet all the other criteria. Yes, a Bachelor degree is important to most employers, but just as many employers will substitute experience for the actual degree.

Make sure that you include in your cover letter the fact that you are going to pursue your bachelors. It will make you seem more ambitous.

How do you network?  Everyone says it's one of the best ways to get a job.....but where do I start?

Send out emails, join clubs, tell people at church, ask friends who work at places you are interested in if there are any job openings. Personally, I never had much luck with networking. Wether I was doing it wrong or whatever, I haven't heard of anyone else who has had a great deal of success, either.

Quick story: I went on an interview many months ago and about halfway through the interview, I stopped the attorney and told him that I wasn't the correct choice for his office because I thought that he was a disorganized mess who could not put a coherent sentence together in front of me. I was worried about what actually happened in court. He started laughing until he was red in the face (which didn't take long since he was quite obese) and confessed that his wife said much the same thing to him on a daily basis.We parted company with a handshake and that evening I got a phone call from him asking me if I would consider sending my resume to a friend of his who needed someone with my skills. He promised that the friend was the opposite of him. He provided me with his friend's phone number and I called the next day. I needed to leave a message and then called back around 4:00 that evening. I called again mid-morning of the next day and this time left a message with his receptionist. I never received a phone call back. Ever.