Advance Laterally (Score 1)

I was in the exact same position, in 2001. Graduated with a CS degree into a difficult job market, found a QA position after several months of looking. While there I did pick up on some odd jobs like cvs maintainer, random programming bits, but it was clear the company wasn't going to move me into full time programming. I ended up taking a job at another company in professional services / account management. Seemingly a step back from the technical career path, but I was hired as the technical resource on accounts, handling integration work. Hence, in retrospect a lateral move. While there I worked very closely with the engineering team, but for a few years advanced my career more in line with professional services. Fast forward a couple of years, I was doing full-time account management, traveling to meet clients... and decided I wanted to be a programmer instead. Thankfully I'd kept up with my programming skills even in a non-engineering side of the company, and was hired into an engineering position at another company. Point is, don't be afraid to be creative as to your position and career path, just keep honing your skills and interests. And just from a personal POV, get out of QA.