Proceedings of the International scientific and practical conference ―New York Global Science Conference 2026‖ (May 18-20, 2026) / Publisher website: www.naukainfo.com. – New York, USA, 2026. - 322 p.

186 higher education specialist is the image constructs formed even before the beginning of his professional teaching activities. That is why the process of imagining a student as a prerequisite for the formation of his professional brand deserves in-depth study. Given the limited theoretical and methodological basis for the formation of image and reputation constructs of a specialist’s brand during his studies at a higher education institution, the vast majority of higher education applicants ignore the need to create at least a basis for the further formation of a professional or personal brand, and a small part of proactive students is forced to intuitively seek their own ways to self-realization. In this regard, the starting points of classical marketing research seem appropriate, which justify the mandatory stage of adapting the product to the market (its delivery, installation, configuration, and in some cases – reconfiguration for use not for its intended purpose), by analogy with which the professional adaptation of a university graduate to future professional activity takes place. At the same time, among the priority tasks of higher education, unfortunately, there is no task of at least partially forming a positive image among university students, although there is a clear unity of views in the educational environment on the need for a student to acquire the role of an active subject of the educational process. That is why the brand of a scientific and pedagogical specialist, the foundations for the formation of which are not formed during the student years, is deprived of the necessary "starting" competitive advantages, which becomes noticeable during employment (especially at the international level). In addition, the early formation of positive image constructs in a higher education student helps him, while still studying at the university, to choose and test the most appropriate, in his opinion, self-presentation strategy in communicating with teachers, the institution's administration, future potential employers during internships, etc. (Slobodyska & Savchuk, 2016; Yunyk, 2026). Even a fragmentary awareness by a student of the elements of a future professional personal brand, taking into account the medium and long-term prospects for realizing his potential, plays an important role in strengthening personal motivation for learning, providing an opportunity to consciously build a system of target priorities, use time management