I’ve got the certs, but no experience

Ok,I’m breaking into the IT market, I’ve got my MCSE and will have MCDBA shortly. I understand the concepts behind the exam subjects very well. My hands-on experience consists of labwork at the school and playing with the software on a couple of systems at home. However, almost every job posting I see on Dice.com wants 2-3 years of experience.

What are some ways to overcome this Catch-22 situation? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.