Using personal branding to secure a scholarship is like creating a unique selling proposition. Basically, you’re showcasing your experiences, achievements, and qualities in order to set yourself apart from other candidates. Through branding, you’re giving the scholarship comitee a glimpse into your life’s journey and where you want to go.

Similar to corporate branding, personal branding for college applications should be used in all your documents. You can mention it in interviews, essays, and social media profiles. Your primary goal is to present yourself as someone who seeks to make a positive impact in the world.

Although using personal branding in your applications sounds like an easy thing to do, it’s anything but. The biggest challenge is finding a balance between telling your story and providing valuable information. In the end, you don’t want to be too salesy with self-promotion.

Creating Your Personal Brand

If you wish to create a solid personal brand for your college applications, you must be objective. Not only should you highlight your positive abilities, but you should also talk about your character flaws. You must also ensure consistent messaging across different channels.

Perhaps the best way to address this issue is by spending money on college admissions consulting services. These experts know how to package this information in a way that won’t feel overbearing. 

Talk About Your Character

To start the process, you must take a journey of self-reflection. You have to identify your personal strengths that make you stand out from other candidates. Find things you’re passionate about and that you’re willing to pursue after college is over. Don’t be afraid to dream big, as colleges are looking for movers and shakers. 

The good rule of thumb is to mention your extracurricular accomplishments and all the hurdles you had to overcome. Talking about your failures is also a positive thing, as it shows that you’re up to a challenge and not afraid to fail. Mention how each of these experiences shaped you into the person you are today.

Getting recommendations from your mentors is a good way to corroborate some of this information. Find ways to introduce this information into different documents without sounding overbearing. 

Introduce Your Brand

Once you create a list of all the character traits you wish to highlight, the next step is introducing them into your documents and channels:

• Online Profiles: Nowadays, scholarship committees often start reviewing applications by visiting social media. Here, they can uncover a lot of dirt about a person and quickly eliminate them. This is why your social media accounts have to be bulletproof. Use Facebook, Instagram, and other platforms to record your achievements and everything positive you’ve done in your life.
• Interviews: The best way to highlight your personality is during college interviews. You’ll have a chance to talk about everything positive you’ve done in life and the character flaws you wish to eliminate. Most importantly, make sure you sound authentic, as otherwise officers will feel you’re faking a persona.
• Essays: You can also sprinkle information about your achievements, character, and personal objectives in essays. Find a way to connect your own life goals with those of college. Talk about how you’d like to change the world or at least your community with your actions.

Stay Consistent

You must be consistent with your branding. Otherwise, your words might ring false. Go through all your online channels and change your personal information. Make sure that you’re presenting yourself in the same manner across all the profiles and documents.

By spreading the same, exact info across different platforms, you gain credibility. Furthermore, it will help you catch the scholarship committee’s eye. 

5 Advantages of a Scholarship Application Branding

Creating a properly focused message can make a world of difference for your college application. Some of the main benefits you’ll experience include: 

1. More Visibility: The biggest advantage of branding is that it will set you apart from other candidates. It helps you grab the attention of the scholarship committee while showcasing your experience and qualities in an easy-to-remember manner. 
2. Avoiding Elimination: The college application process is not only about things you’ve done right, but also things you’ve done wrong. If you don’t organize your online channels and documents, there’s a chance an unwanted piece of info will slip through. When you’re using best branding practices, you’re forced to revise all your profiles and rectify any posts that might jeopardize your application. 
3. Enhanced Networking: Crafting a perfect essay unlocks many opportunities for networking. It will turn the scholarship committee’s head, but also attract mentors, peers, and potential employers. By connecting with these individuals, you’re creating a strong basis for later in life.
4. Increased Credibility: Spreading the same message across different outlets significantly increases your credibility. It makes it look as if you’re not trying to impress the scholarship committee, but instead, that this is your real personality. 
5. Higher Scholarship Chances: In the end, all of these things will increase the odds of securing a scholarship. Proper branding can be a game-changer for getting a scholarship and, with that, much-needed financial support.

Future of Branding in Scholarship Application

Given that personal branding is a method that works, high school students all over the US are implementing it into their applications. Unfortunately, as the media around us evolves, we must be prepared to adapt our approach accordingly.

Social media and various other platforms have become our calling cards. They give the scholarship committee a glimpse into your life and how you fit their ideal candidates. That being said, you have to place emphasis on cohesion and be smart about what you’re posting.

The selection process is also changing all the time. Scholarship committees are looking for candidates who ooze charisma and want to make a change in their community. During the vetting process, committees take a look at candidates’ interests, character, and social engagement as main factors for determining the winner.