University of San Carlos

Founded originally in 1595 as Colegio de San Ildefonso which was closed upon the expulsion of the Jesuit missionaries from the Philippines in 1768.

Prompted by the decree of the Council of Trent that every diocese must have a seminary for the formation and training of priests, Bishop Mateo Joaquin de Arevalo, in a letter dated 25 October 1777, petitioned Charles III of Spain for the legal bequest of the buildings of the old Colegio de San Ildefonso.

On 23 August 1783 the Spanish government officially turned over the properties that it had confiscated and hitherto owned, marking the birth of the Cebu Seminary, named the Real Seminario de San Carlos after the counter-reformation saint, St. Charles Borromeo.

José Morales del Rosario, was appointed by the Dominican Bishop Francisco Genoves, and was followed by a series of secular rectors until 1867.

The decree vested to the University of Santo Tomas in Manila, through its Rector, the direction, supervision and responsibility for the good running of such schools; the conduct of final examinations at the end of the five-year course; and the awarding of all diplomas of the Bachelor of Arts degree.

In response, in 1887 Bishop Martin Alcocer of Cebu pleaded to the Vincentian administration of the Seminario-Colegio de San Carlos to send more personnel in order to comply with government standards.

The University of Santo Tomas recognized the five-year program of the Seminario-Colegio de San Carlos, and in 1894, the first batch of Cebuanos arrived in Manila and passed the examination for the Bachelor of Arts degree.

San Carlos was specifically for the training of diocesan priests, and it simply took over the facility of the former, a Jesuit central house with an attached day school.

[10][11] In 2010, the National Historical Commission of the Philippines installed a bronze marker declaring USC's foundation late in the 18th century, effectively disproving any direct connection with the Colegio de San Ildefonso.

[14] In 2010, the National Historical Commission of the Philippines installed a bronze marker declaring USC's foundation late in the 18th century, effectively disproving any direct connection with the Colegio de San Ildefonso.

In 1946, the Cathedral Convent of Cebu and the Little Flower Academy along P. Gomez Street were rebuilt as a training department for the Education and Junior Normal students.

[17] A few years after Liberation, San Carlos also commenced the construction of the first concrete building in Cebu across Pelaez Street, which was used for the Boys' High School.

This unplanned influx spurred pioneering research in fields such as anthropology, physics, engineering, and philosophy, greatly contributing to the nation's post-war reconstruction.

[16] In 1963, the first Coconut Chemical Plant was opened by the University San Carlos in Talamban, as a joint project of the German and Philippine governments.

This period of growth coincided with a surge of militant nationalism, which led to calls for the Filipinization of all Catholic school administrations in the country.

[16] In the subsequent decades, USC continued to expand and was often involved in significant national events, including the Martial Law era in the 1970s and the People Power Revolution at EDSA in 1986.

[16] Starting in the 1980s, the Talamban expansion was further developed, with the construction of the Arnoldus Science Complex and Retreat House (1982), Church of Sts.

[19] In 2012, USC inaugurated one of the country's biggest university central library and learning resource center at the Talamban campus.

Research efforts are supported by a print collection of over 200,000 titles and almost 10,000 non-print volumes housed in the university's library system, along with subscriptions to 17 online journals.

Nationwide, USC ranks fourth in the number of CHED-recognized centers, with eight COEs and twelve CODs As of 2016, and extended in 2019.

[32][33] USC Bio-Process Engineering Research Center (BioPERC) of the Chemical Engineering (ChE) Department research and development (R&D) project on the re-use and re-utilization through biochemical processing of bio-organic wastes from processed mangoes and other tropical fruits into high value-added, healthy and anti-oxidant rich flour, fine poly-organic chemicals and activated carbon, is recognized by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) as the "First Success Story" of an Intellectual Property (IP) technology innovation and commercialization from the academe in the Philippines.

The project catalyzed the inception of a new spin-off company Green Enviro Management Systems, Inc. (GEMS) which inaugurated and commenced full operation in 2015 of its processing plant facilities located in Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu.

[34] USC School of Law and Governance The USC School of Law and Governance was recognized by the Legal Education Board of the Supreme Court of the Philippines for excellence in legal education as being the fourth nationwide highest passing percentage and performance in the bar exams from 2012 to 2017.

[35] USC School of Law and Governance is the only law school in the Visayas and Mindanao to be granted a license by the Supreme Court to have a Clinical Legal Education Program (CLEP), whereby its senior students are allowed to handle actual cases in the court with the assistance and under the guidance of a licensed member of the bar.

Likewise, it is the first law school in the Philippines outside Metro Manila to be accredited by the Supreme Court to conduct Mandatory Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) seminar for lawyers.

[37] The University of San Carlos (USC) boasts significant international linkages that enrich its academic environment.

This extensive network enhances the university's multicultural community, offering students and faculty opportunities to engage in diverse academic and cultural experiences, thereby supporting USC's commitment to global standards and excellence in education.

[45] British Council United Kingdom and Philippines Transnational Education (TNE) bilateral cooperation with the Commission of Higher Education (CHED) granted in 2017 long-term institutional support and funding to USC School of Engineering dual graduate studies program on Doctor of Engineering with Coventry University in London, and the USC School of Architecture, Fine Arts and Design graduate program on Master of Design and Arts with Cardiff Metropolitan University in London.

[47] The governor, through her personal Facebook account, invited the editor-in-chief of TC, Berns Mitra, to her office on Wednesday, March 25, 2020, to discuss the matter.

[48][50] Notable alumni of the university include Sergio Osmeña Sr., fourth President and the first Vice President of the Philippines;[51] Senators Vicente Rama,[52] Vicente Sotto,[52] Mariano Jesus Cuenco,[52] Filemon Sotto,[52] Sergio Osmeña III,[52] John Henry Osmeña,[52] Rene Espina,[52] Manuel C. Briones;[52] Napoleon G. Rama, Award-winning journalist, Floor Leader of the Constitutional Convention, Premio Zobel and Ninoy Aquino Memorial Award recipient;[53] Congressmen Miguel Cuenco,[54] Raul del Mar,[54] and Pablo P. Garcia,[54] and Glenn A. Chong;[54] Governors Dionisio A. Jakosalem,[55] Emilio Mario Osmeña,[56] Osmundo G. Rama,[57] and Hilario P. Davide III;[58] Hilario G. Davide, Jr.,[59] Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines; Aniano A. Desierto,[60] former Ombudsman of the Republic of the Philippines; Edgardo Delos Santos,[61] Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines; Lourdes Reynes Quisumbing, PhD,[62] Secretary of Education, Culture and Sports; Ernesto Pernia, PhD,[63] Secretary of Economic Development and Planning and director general of National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA); Resil Mojares, PhD,[64] Filipino historian and critic of Philippine literature, a National Artist of the Philippines for Literature; Antonio Abad, Premio Zobel winner in 1928 and 1929, a poet, fiction author, playwright and essayist; Erlinda Kintanar Alburo, PhD[citation needed], contemporary Cebuano language scholar and promoter of the language; Ramon Fernandez,[65] PBA player; Lauro Mumar,[66] national team head coach of India and the Philippines; John Gokongwei, Jr.;[67] businessman, self-made billionaire, philanthropist, founder and chairman of JG Summit Holdings; Eugene Acevedo,[68] businessman and President of Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC).

Historical marker installed by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines in 2010
The Seminario-Colegio de San Carlos at the start of the Vincentian administration in 1867, located on Calle Martires (now M.J. Cuenco Ave.), Cebu City.
Facade of the old main building in Downtown Campus
USC Lawrence Bunzel Building
USC SAFAD Building - Talamban Campus
USC SAFAD Building in Talamban Campus