Then Congressman Gaudencio Abordo sponsored the bill establishing the college at the then municipality of Puerto Princesa.

Funded by an initial half-a-million pesos, the university opened night classes to 101 students under the tutelage of 10 faculty members, and 16 support staff, using four borrowed classrooms from state-funded Palawan National High School.

It was however only on November 12, 1994, under the stewardship of PSU's fifth president Dr. Crispiniano Acosta, that Palawan State College was elevated into a university by virtue of R.A. 7818, sponsored by congressman Alfredo Abueg, Jr. and David Ponce de Leon.

In addition, a number of extramural studies and programs are being offered in the Palawan State University's College of Community Resources and Development (CCRD) in rural campuses of Rizal, Narra, Quezon, Araceli, Brooke's Point, San Vicente, Cuyo, Coron, Balabac, Roxas, Taytay, El Nido, Linapacan, San Rafael, Sofronio Española, Dumaran and Bataraza.

328-2010, the commission approved the University’s application for the deputation to offer Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Bachelor of Science in Petroleum Engineering effective January 2011 until January 2016 via Expanded Tertiary Education Equivalency and Accreditation Program (ETEEAP).

The School of Medical Sciences will offer the MD degree, which is equivalent to MBBS in the Commonwealth (UK) system.