Advice - someone ardent about film/"visual media"? (long)

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Maybe someone can help me, maybe not. I just need to feel as informed as possible.

I'm in my mid-twenties, still living with parents and far from independent, but I really wanna be. For as long as I can remember, I've loooooooooooved movies and other "popular" art forms (TV/video games/music). My dream job is to be a movie critic, but I can't stand writing about things I'm not interested in. So instead of Journalism or English as a major, I'm doing Mass Communications. I've read various random things that say you don't need a degree, but the networking from internship(s) and through our professor (yes, one professor, who's built lots of contacts over the years) are the main thing. (I've asked two of the three major news stations and a radio station about simply volunteering in some capacity, and they've all said they only do it through schools)

Problem is, this major's only available at private schools, and after two years at one in another state (and community college to do general education classes), the amount of money my parents can contribute is gone. I qualify for more aid due to being able to file as "independent", but there's still a gap. Second semester starts a little over a month from now and if I can stay motivated and focused, I can earn more, better scholarships to make it to the finish with less of a burden.

The apparently common Aspie traits of bad focus/mindfulness, verbal communication/short-term memory, "locking up" under pressure, and being "slow" (depression/weight don't help) have kept me from doing well in various low-level service/labor jobs in this area. At this point I feel like a degree and/or strongly established skills in an extremely visual, routine-oriented job is my best path towards something that's proportionate to the tears, sweat, time and money that have been invested. And last but not least, my girlfriend of two years (living 100 miles away) is probably getting.....a little impatient. (she's struggling to make things work on her own as well, but she's found a field she loves and has a job. She loves me as I am, but I still need to be a better version of myself)

you can start by checking out websites that publish professional reviews and write your own ones (reviews, analysis, articles) to submit to them. This way, you are building up a portfolio of sorts. When you do speak to those companies you are interested in, you can show them that you write for the following websites, how many people have read your articles/find them useful.

attend film screenings or other media events too so you can expose yourself to a wider scope of the industry, gather information and write reports about them as well.

(also, really nothing bad about living with parents. These days rent is so expensive half your pay is gone. Better to give that money to your parents and make them happy.)