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Profile Building is all about building a profile that showcases your strengths and talks about who you are. It is a long term process where you start building your profile while you are in high school.
Why Profile Building is important today?
Over the past few years, the number of students scoring 90 per cent and above has more than doubled. This makes it obvious now that marks alone are not good enough to get into top colleges abroad. While the academic grades were the first criteria for an applicant pre-pandemic to make the list, colleges have to take a different approach to admit students. In an attempt to differentiate between student profiles, they receive for admission, colleges have now begun to look beyond academics to pick the best students.
Some look at leadership and creative skills, while others look for interest in the field to know the applicant better. They will select the student who will show spike in the area of interest.
What is profile building?
Profile building is a process of developing skills which can be showcased on your CV. The aim of developing the profile is to create a portfolio that can showcase your areas of interests. Any activity undertaken to create awareness of the program, building skills, showcasing achievements, and involvement to advance your career or education goals is a way to build your profile.
When is the right time to start?
Time is key. Grade 9 onwards is an important time for high school students to start and for university students from second year onwards. Grades are top priority followed by a strong profile for university admissions. A missed opportunity means that a whole year goes to waste, and with the speed that the world is moving at, this is a big risk.
What activities can you do for profile building?
Research Project:
Pursue research on a topic that’s been close to your heart and related to the program you are targeting. Create a research project based on your interest. With the opening up of the virtual world, it is also possible that you might gain access to some of the elusive experts in your field of interest. Approach them, write to them, get some invaluable guidance and inputs and make the most of this opportunity.
Self-driven projects:
Self-Study: A number of universities offer free, and paid, certifications, MOOC’s, and courses online. Many are self-paced and are easily available. This would be a great time to upskill yourself.
Online Projects: Collaborate with like-minded team-mates for an online fundraiser. Participate in digithons, hackathons, debates or other challenges that can certify your area of interest.
The virtual world is bursting with content right now, and the largest consumer is students. Make the most of this opportunity.
Once you begin to think about it, there’s no limit to the number of activities that you can participate in to build up your profile. Remember, the purpose of profile building activities is to create an extended portrait of yourself. Your CV should be able to point the reader in all the directions where you have an interest, expertise, or skill. Profile building is a systematic, logical, research-based method to enhance your chances for education and professional goals.
To sum up, an admissions officer or prospective employer needs to see your career focus, area of interest, overall achievements as well as lateral and creative thinking. They will want to notice your level of persistence and commitment and evaluate you on different parameters to make sure that they are choosing only the best candidates. All of this is possible if you have spent enough time fleshing out profile building activities.
Futures abroad offers customized profile building service tailored to your needs.
- Internships
- Community outreach projects
- Research Opportunities
- Communication Enhancement workshops
- Leadership activities and engagement
