Wrong! You can definitely teach tact. Your points 1-4 can all be improved. Point 5 is more difficult: if you're willing to give up your "nerdy" hobbies, sure, more chicks might like you, but I'd say that's way too much of a sacrifice. However, if you work on points 1-4, you'll definitely do better in the dating world!

Also, not all "hot chicks" are as superficial as you're implying :)

So in order to "ease entry into the world of work", they'll "learn how to write flirtatious text messages and emails"? Hm. Reeks of a sexual harrassment course to me :) Seriously though: I love this idea. I don't oppose the idea that you can be perfectly happy in your own antisocial world, but still you can't deny the fact that you need some amount of social skills for your career, especially now that the job market is tightening up. A recruiter that has to choose between two guys with pretty much the same amount of computer skills, will definitely choose the one that acts friendlier and looks less scruffy.

Just wondering: are there any predictions on how long the recession will last? Because if it lasts for less than, say, 3 years, doing a PhD is really a pretty nice option. However, if the recession lasts another 3-4 years, you might be in even bigger trouble, because you're higher educated and thus more expensive for companies to hire...