Where do I go from here, careerwise?

[Astra]

I graduated two years ago and promptly got what I thought was exactly the kind of job I'm perfect for in my chosen field. I'm apparently pretty good at it, but lately I'm getting tired of it. For one thing, the work itself isn't nearly as challenging as I had expected.

Another reason is that education is not appreciated at all in my workplace. I have a college degree in what I do and I am resented for that. Any ideas I come up with or new things I understand and am able to answer questions about are ridiculed and sometimes even sabotaged. I'm almost always the only person to volunteer for extra training opportunities, and I can't get enough of them because I am so bored. I'm sure my age and gender don't help matters, but I'm apparently quite unpopular with my coworkers. The fact that upper management seems to like me and would possibly want to clone me only intensifies the feelings of the rest, who hold a seething hatred for anything management-like. It's also a dead-end position, there is no financial benefit to good work or years put in. The only method of advancement is if a supervisor leaves (drops dead is the more likely scenario though).

I started looking at other jobs, specifically federal ones. I really would prefer to work somewhere with a better defined chain of command (ours is practically nonexistent) and a more professional setting. My odds seem to suck though. I've been rejected for several due to "not being one of the most qualified applicants."

I'm also starting to consider going back to school for a master's degree. However, the nearby college's program in this field is specialized to a completely different area than I'm interested in and there's no way I can take traditional classes right now due to my work schedule. There are some good schools that offer the program I want that are fairly close to my family, but I don't know if I could afford to pack up and become a full time student without a lot of financial help. I really don't have the first clue about graduate school, other than that I would need to take the GRE.

I just don't know what to do at this point. I spent years with laser sights on getting a job like this, and now that I have it, it's like every bit of enjoyment and satisfaction has been sucked out of me.

I guess I'm just looking for a little support right now, heck knows I'm not getting it from anyone I work with and this job doesn't allow me to have much of a social life. Any comfort and/or advice is welcome.