I'll be choosy or I'll take a lame, more temporary job elsewhere, while I build up a codebase to improve my chances in a later application.<p>"afford" is a pretty vague word.  It depends on your priorities.  Money is pretty low on my list.  Happiness is near the top.  I'll be more happy in a medium-bad job that I can easily change from, than stuck for longer in a medium job that I "had" to take.  What cost are you measuring?  Money?  Free time?  Ability to travel?  Proximity to Wisconsin? (good cheese is <i>important</i>, dammit!)<p>Also, I'd like to point out that if they're not hinting to HR that they're interested in skills, not GPA, they're probably nearly a place I wouldn't want to work with.  And / or HR is doing a crappy job, and they're allowing HR to continue to do so, which <i>also</i> puts them in that category.  People are important, and any business that devalues people so far makes their employee satisfaction very questionable.<p>I am in CS because I <i>like</i> it.  If I really need to, I'll pick something else up and do that.  What matters to me is my life, my wife, and living happily, not making as much money as I can.