I've taken some liberties with the narrative and introduced some fictional elements for dramatic effect. People and places are fictionalized. The core issues are not. The events leading up to this fragment actually happened, including the timeframe of Dan's interview cycle and his girlfriend's reaction--and wise counsel to exercise caution. At this point in the novel my own life and the protagonist's are almost perfectly aligned. My girlfriend's warning (now wife) was no more heeded than Linda's warning to Dan. Optimists always see the glass as half full until the very moment they die of dehydration. And people who have not had to face failure can develop an unrealistic level of confidence that can propel them to great heights or catastrophic crash landings. And sometimes, as in the case of the protagonist, both--all at once. Hire Lernin': An Idealist's Quest Through the Realm of for-Profit Education (c) 2021.