The article is devoted to the consideration of the peculiarities of the image formation as a process and phenomenon, which, under certain conditions and for a specific purpose, arises in the system of social communications. Particular attention is paid to two facets and types of image: personal (individual) and corporate (the example of higher education institutions). The purpose of the research is to prove the thesis that the formation of an individual image of a person is closely related to the formation of a positive or negative image of an educational institution. The article consists of the following parts: the analysis, the concept of the image and purpose of the image maker today, the concept of brand, the value of the first impression for the formation of the image, the image of the higher educational institution and the components of its formation. The main conclusions of the article indicate that the image of institutions, organizations is formed by people, that why it is impossible to separate the meaning of an individual and corporate image for forming a public opinion about a higher educational institution.

image, image maker, image-forming factors, social communication, corporate image, PR