At the moment, MyDocumate is developing a new product to assist Chinese students in identifying the right scholarships and subsequently preparing documents that meet requirements and expectations of the various adjudicating bodies. The product will be managed by Dr. Camille Bryan, one of the trailblazing advocates for international students’ equal access to scholarships. On a call last week the subject of recommendations came up and in particular the ‘kiss of death’ letter. It sounds completely malevolent right? But in all likelihood, these odds-raising items are unleashed with the utmost ambivalence. Academic recommendation letters have to be detailed, they have to be specific and they have to be overwhelmingly positive (these are my words, not Dr. Bryan’s by the way). The best strategy you can adopt is to adopt a forward-looking approach as early as possible; cultivate good relationships with faculty (work on your ‘elevator pitch’) and maintain an active process of documenting your work with your most important faculty allies. When the time comes you’ll be fully equipped to provide them with a memory-jogging reminder of your collaborative achievements and positive relations; faculty are inevitably very busy and no matter how good your relationship, the onus is on you to keep records and make a plan. It’s your future! Look after it carefully!