Things are pretty much not going to change much for you. Go to school, get your ratings and then plan on instructing, fly cargo, or pretty much anything besides flying the airlines. This is the time honored tradition to building time in this business, not going to an academy and then 6 months later flying 50+ people around.
It will make you a better pilot and with any luck by preventing the airlines from just whipping up replacement workers like cupcakes every time hiring picks up you'll have a chance at actually making a career out of it.