There is no doubt that colleges and universities, both private and public, have their own unique reputations. Each institution’s reputation, or brand, is based on a combination of different factors, including its history, size, location, academic prestige, arts, athletics, resources and alumni.
There will always be some schools that are better known or that have stronger reputations than others; however, no matter where you go to college or graduate school, your school’s brand doesn’t make or break your personal brand or the value that you would bring to an organization.
Here’s my advice:
If you go to an ivy league school or any other institution with a strong, well-known brand, be sure to take advantage of this already-established brand equity and leverage it in your job search efforts. Candidates from your school may already be valuable to and sought after by certain employers and recruiters depending on the successes of past alumni or the current relationship between your school and those specific employers.
However, do not—and I mean, do not—solely ride the coattails of your school’s brand when seeking job opportunities without supporting that brand and even working to overshadow it with your own personal brand. Show employers, recruiters, or anyone interviewing you that you’re a top candidate above and beyond what particular school insignia may grace your diploma.
You should be confident in your interviews. However, if you have attended what is considered to be a “top school,” do not make the mistake of being overly confident by believing that your school’s reputation will be the tipping point in getting you the job. Your personal brand must be even more impressive than the brand of your alma mater. Steer interview conversation to your personal achievements, strengths and contributions.
If you attended a good, yet lesser-known school, don’t be intimidated in your job search by other candidates, regardless of where they went to college, and don’t let your school’s brand discourage you from pursuing your dream opportunities.
Obviously, if you can work through professionals within your alumni network, you can leverage that connection in your outreach to employers and in your interviews; however, establish and consistently express and reinforce your personal brand in all of your communications.
As a personal anecdote, I was actually asked in an interview, “Why should we pick you over all the other candidates from the top programs in the country?”
Now while I am very proud of my college and my graduate business program, I recognize that it is not ranked nationally as highly as some of the programs from which my fellow candidates had graduated. But, I did not let this become an obstacle in my self-presentation. I looked the interviewer confidently in the eyes and said, “You know, my fellow candidates are definitely qualified and come from schools with very strong brands; however, it has been my experience that your personal brand means more to an organization than your school’s, and I believe my personal brand to be …” This proved to be very powerful and successful, as I was offered the opportunity.
Therefore, regardless of how much clout your alma mater’s name may carry, go forth to the job search with confidence in your own personal brand.
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August 17th, 2009 at 2:24 pm
College recruiting will shift dramatically in the next few years. Right now every large organization does the same thing: pick 25 schools, info session, resume screen, interview, hire – result: a 3.6 GPA from a reputable school who is social. If you think this is the best way to source the next generation of innovators – you are absolutely crazy. it is however a great way to not get fired and maintain the status quo.
95% of college recruiting is pointless and a huge waste of resources. And, don’t even get me started on career centers (I think dinosaurs roam those hallways).
Chris, I agree with you 100% – your personal brand (or whatever you want to call it) will matter more and more. The future will be based around meaningful interactions between company and student (not info sessions, tweets, or fb messages). Ultimately, those students that can position themselves as “revenue generators” will win every job, every time.
August 17th, 2009 at 4:19 pm
At the end of the day, all of these “brands” are really just heuristics to help hirers and candidates make decisions under uncertainty.
They’re just tools that help folks guess at what the candidates performance will look like. But this focus on “brand” is somewhat of a workaround. At the end of the day, how can I find out if the candidate will perform, and if he has in the past?
That’s a big nut to crack right there, and ‘brand’, to the extent that it involves an understanding of your professional performance and competency, is one piece, but not nearly sufficient.
I’m glad that Cheezhead is focusing on this, as it’s an important topic. The disconnect between “brand expectations” and actual performance (e.g., “He went to Harvard Business School! How could I have known he wouldn’t get anything done!”) is something that destroys a lot of value in the market, and creates all sorts of distortions like internal politics, and worse. Look forward to reading more on this, Chris.
August 18th, 2009 at 10:07 am
“Personal brand” has always been important, it’s just that the term has been recently coined. I think this article might be more effective if geared toward students who attend community colleges or opt to pursue online programs rather than a traditional 4-year campus school. They might be the ones that are intimidated by their peers who attended traditional college degree programs (Ivy or not). They might lack the confidence in their abilities to get the interview and ultimately the job offer.
August 18th, 2009 at 4:03 pm
People hire people they like. I am in no way discounting the fact that a good school is an advantage however what gets a person a job is the way they interview. The interview may be one of the most under-rated experiences and that one single activity can be the difference between someone working the career of their dreams and working the job that they had to take because they were desperate.
Look at the lady that sued her college and career services (agree with you Ted) because she invested $70k in her education and is now unemployed. I presume it is not the educations fault she is still looking for a job.
Thanks for a good topic of discussion.
August 21st, 2009 at 1:04 pm
I am a student at Santa Clara University, a well known private school on the west coast. I hope to use my school’s brand to network and have that extra step ahead when it comes to jobs, but I would not solely rely upon it. On paper my education looks great, but when I get in there for an interview I have to be able to stand out and brand myself.