Why build a personal brand?

Build a strong personal brand to stand out to employers and universities, grow your network, and gain self-awareness.

Last updated 16 June 2026

Your brand is what other people say of you when you are not in the room

Jeff Bezos, Amazon

A personal brand is similar to a corporate brand.

It is who you are, what you stand for, the values you embrace, and the way in which you express those values. (article)

You get to know yourself better

While working on developing your personal brand, you are forced to look deep inside and ask yourself what your interests, skills and values are. In doing so, you become more self-aware and can start focusing on areas which you want to be known for.

While you can only use words to describe your attributes in your university application, a website or blog can bring your qualities to life. A website or blog is not just evidence of a long-standing passion e.g. artwork, photography etc, it can showcase your unique style and values. Blogging or twittering can be evidence of your strong communication skills and display how passionate you are about certain societal issues.
Personal branding allows you to stand out from the rest. Your future employer or university admissions officers are likely to remember you better if you have a unique personal brand.

As universities move towards aptitude-based admissions, grades become less important and there is an increasing need to brand yourself so that you can stand out from the rest of the candidates.
Having a strong personal brand also means that you are a more impressive candidate as you have a good concept of who you are and why you are applying for the university.

70% of employers use social media to screen candidates during the hiring process. It is wise to maintain a positive online presence.
Also, with the advent of the gig economy, building a personal brand becomes fundamental. In the gig economy, a strong personal brand is the only thing that individuals can take with them between jobs. An individual can take control of and actively build their brand, so that even if they suffer setbacks in their career, their personal brand can survive.

While many universities may not look at your digital profile yet, a negative online image (if googled) will severely damage your university entry chances. Hence it is better to intentionally create a positive online presence rather than to leave it to chance.

As you build your online presence, you will make new connections and build up your reputation. A survey showed that 85% of people are finding their job through networking. You will be silly not to start building a large network while in university!
Through networking, you can meet many mentors whom can give you advice and help you through your career.