State-owned universities in Zimbabwe are facing intensified competition, both domestically and internationally. To survive and thrive in this competitive landscape, universities are employing various strategies, including customer-based university branding. This study aims to investigate the impact of customer-based university branding as a survival strategy for state-owned universities in Zimbabwe. The study employed a quantitative research methodology and collected data from one thousand students selected from four state-owned universities using probability sampling. The results indicate that there is a positive relationship between customer-based university branding and the capacity of state-owned universities to survive in the face of foreign competition. A conceptual framework was proposed for managing university branding from a customer-based perspective, including university brand elements, managing university communications, developing a university’s marketing strategy, and relationship management. The study provides valuable insights for university management on how to brand their respective universities from a customer-based perspective