Brand equity in higher education has received significant scholarly attention in recent years. However, there are a number of contradictions between the empirically approved determinants and the dimensions of brand equity in higher education. This research empirically investigates an adopted brand equity conceptual model in both a developed market and an emerging higher education market to develop a comparative analysis based on cultural dimensions. The empirical study included a qualitative exploratory research and a subsequent quantitative research in USA (an example of a developed market) and Egypt (an example of emerging market). Further, the authors qualitatively explored, via in-depth qualitative interviews, the industry for more insightful results based on customer's perception in both markets. Findings indicated that the determinants of brand equity reported in the literature vary depending on the higher education industry maturity and cultural contexts.