UQAPS

Creating a connected, student-led brand for postgraduate life at The University of Queensland

UQAPS. Built around postgraduates.

UQAPS needed a brand that reflected the reality of postgraduate life within The University of Queensland — complex, independent and often fragmented across campuses, disciplines and experiences.

The existing identity felt corporate and inconsistent, with little distinction from The University of Queensland or UQ Union. More importantly, it didn’t reflect the role UQAPS plays as a central support system for postgraduates.

This project was about creating a brand that could unify, support and scale — not just visually, but operationally.

A Clear Strategic Direction

We reframed UQAPS as the central hub for postgraduate life at UQ.

This meant building a brand that balances:

  • Academic credibility
  • Human support
  • Campus-wide inclusivity

The foundation was anchored in a clear positioning:

Built around postgraduates

Supported by a Sage-led personality, the brand communicates with clarity and confidence, while remaining approachable and student-led.

A Brand System That Works in Practice

UQAPS operates across multiple campuses, services and audiences. The brand needed to simplify, not add complexity.

We introduced a Branded House with Endorsed Extensions:

  • UQAPS as the master brand
  • Campuses as identifiers, not sub-brands
  • HDR as a clear academic extension

This structure ensures consistency while allowing flexibility where needed.

A Visual Identity Built Around Connection

The identity is grounded in a circle / hub concept — representing belonging, connection and a shared postgraduate experience.

At the centre sits UQ, reinforcing alignment and credibility within the university ecosystem.

The form also introduces a subtle human layer, with the “U” shaping a smile, balancing structure with warmth.

The result is a mark that feels both credible and approachable, designed to support rather than dominate.

A System Designed for Everyday Use

Rather than relying on complex colour systems, the brand uses a pillar-led approach:

  • Growth
  • Community
  • Wellbeing

Each is expressed through icons, messaging and structure — creating a system that is:

  • easier to understand
  • easier to apply
  • scalable across teams

This ensures consistency without limiting flexibility.

A Practical Rollout Framework

Beyond the identity, the focus was on creating tools that internal teams could actually use.

This included:

  • A clear messaging hierarchy
  • Editable templates for everyday use
  • A structured guidelines system
  • Scalable assets across digital and print

The goal was simple: make the brand easy to apply, not just easy to present.

A System Built to Scale

This is not just a new look,  it’s a complete brand system designed to grow with UQAPS.

From governance to campaigns, from HDR to everyday student engagement, the brand now provides a clear, flexible and consistent foundation for the future.

What They Say
“Jho, Amber and the entire team are just true masters of their tradecraft. Their product is absolutely exceptional and it’s matched pound-for-pound by their customer service. Working with Viabrand on our organisation’s brand evolution project was an absolute joy and I couldn’t speak highly enough of the experience end-to-end. Thanks, Viabrand!”
John - CEO (Workcom)

“The Viabrand® team were very professional and were able to update our branding, promotional material and website to suit our target market for the relaunch of our brand.”

Max - Mechanical & Technical Engineering Manager (Snosko)

“Viabrand® offer an incredible graphic design and copywriting service. From the moment I first encountered their work, I was highly impressed with the quality of their designs and the creativity of their writing.

One thing I love about working with this marketing company is that they take time to get to know your business needs before jumping into any project. They take an individualised approach which ensures that everything they create is tailored specifically for you. Additionally, they are always willing to listen to feedback while remaining open-minded throughout the process. This helps ensure maximum satisfaction from all parties involved in each project.

Thank you, Jho and Amber. I am looking forward to the further collaborations.”

Damon - Digital Marketing Manager (Shafston International College)

“We’ve worked with Viabrand® for many years now on a variety of different projects from branding, design work to a recent TVC campaign. The team is fantastic to work with, the process is very structured and organised with nothing missed or out of the question.

We have been very happy with all the work from Viabrand® especially the recent TVC campaign. The team working on the project were highly experienced and delivered exceptional results.”

Rachael - Brand Manager (Century Batteries)

“I met the team at Viabrand® mid-way through a brand refresh project when I first joined Ultra Labels as Marketing Manager. The project scope was far-reaching and encompassed a revitalised brand strategy and delivery of a full suite of brand collateral. Our project manager, Amber, worked tirelessly with me to ensure that I was brought up to speed on all the major decision points. Even at an advanced stage of the project, my feedback was listened to and incorporated which was very much appreciated and I was struck by the responsiveness and professionalism of the Viabrand® team.

I am very happy with the results – their work on both our brand strategy and the way they applied insights gained to deliver a comprehensive and cohesive suite of stand-out brand collateral. And our sales team are delighted with their polished and professional toolkit!”

Tess - Marketing Manager (Ultra Labels)

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We were completely blown away and loved our new brand the moment we saw it. This gave us the clarity and professional brand identity we needed to move forward with confidence as a business. Viabrand’s process, knowledge, skills and support are second to none! We look forward to our ongoing partnership.”

Christos - Managing Director (Embient)

“We approached the Viabrand® team to help us strategically refresh the Opticomm brand. We needed to balance the creation of a contemporary brand while staying true to our core. Viabrand® understood our organisation and what we are about. They supported the creation of a brand identity, narrative and architecture that captured who we are, what we stand for, and what we offer. The team was patient, supportive, and responsive.”

Tamika - (Uniti Group)

“We approached the Viabrand® team to help us move from a collection of brand elements to a brand that was consistent, professional and really captured the essence of who we were.

We also put forth the challenge of taking our new business that had global growth and capturing our brand while not being just another technology company. Not only did the Viabrand® team deliver on this, they really went above and beyond.

We now have the professional brand identity that is setting us apart from the norm. Viabrand® have become our go to trusted partner in this space as we’ve found a professional team we can rely on.”

Aaron - CEO (StormWarden)

“I want to thank Viabrand® for all their assistance. The engagement with Viabrand® to launch our new business partnership with a global brand went very smoothly and was completed very efficiently. Well done to your team!”

Craig - Managing Director (Nqpetro)

“Having worked with Jho and the team at Viabrand® for the past couple of years, they have earned a great deal of trust and respect within our business. This has been achieved through a number of contributing factors, including their absolute responsiveness to our support requests, their pro-active approach towards continuous maintenance improvements of our overall web environment and their creative thinking around our corporate branding strategy. They always deliver on-time and on-budget and most importantly, it’s all done with a smile.”

Geoff - IT Manager (Opticomm)

“I would like to pass on our thanks to the Viabrand® team. We are very happy with the outcomes their rebrand process has been able to achieve for our business. When we showed our staff your work and they loved it. Spot on!”

Michael - Managing Director (Burke Raftery)

“We engaged Viabrand® to plan, release and provide ongoing brand development of our company’s image across social media and channel sales campaigns. They delivered a refresh of our brand and rebuilt our business website. I can pleasingly say that their responsiveness, work ethic and the subsequent results have been nothing short of fantastic!”

Scott - Product Manager (Intelepower Systems)

Uscribe engaged the team at Viabrand® to come up with a full rebrand for the then Sign Technologies Australia. Their creativity and their ability to capture our ideas and translate into a brand identity was truly amazing. Right from the outset, the team was passionate about our brand and even shared other ideas beyond just the rebrand. I would strongly recommend Jho and his team.

Arnie - Arnie General Manager (Uscribe Australia)

Viabrand® have been an invaluable asset for my company and its branding, marketing and graphic design requirements from the day we first engaged several years ago. They quickly became the ‘go to’ people for all our graphic design requirements small and large. I would not hesitate in strongly recommending engaging Viabrand®, as Jho and his team possess an unworldly skill to extract from one’s head their artistic vision for how they see their company brand, and then help you get your brand out to the world.

Daniel - Managing Director (Red Dog Group Australia)

Viabrand® has clear direction and great ideas. This matched with their excellent management skills and timely delivery leads to successful projects with quick turnaround times. Viabrand® are a pleasure to work with!

Sciobhan - National Marketing Manager (Redflow Energy Solutions)

We have utilised Viabrand® in a broad consultative capacity and have found their insight, creativity, urgency, organisation and integrity to be an excellent fit for our business. Viabrand® has added significant value to our marketing function and have become an invaluable resource.

Jeremy - National Sales & Marketing Manager (Hyne timber)

We engaged Viabrand® to undertake a review of our existing brand and subsequently develop a new brand identity to reflect the vision, values and direction of our business. The team worked with us to understand our business objectives and subsequently developed a new brand identity that was spot on!

Adam - Director, Marquette Properties & Publisher (TheUrbanDeveloper.com)

Viabrand® worked on the development of the Blackett Homes brand and delivered truly impressive solutions for the business. They are a pleasure to work with and are very professional and flexible to our needs. Their passion to merge strategy and creative thinking is evident in the work they produce.

Rick - Blackett Homes (Sales and Marketing Manager)

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Andrew - Marketing Manager (Century Yuasa Batteries)