History
The Pangasinan State University was chartered through the issuance of Presidential Decree No. 1497 promulgated on June 11, 1978 and became operational on July 1, 1979.

The University integrated the collegiate courses of five DECS supervised institutions in the province and all the programs of the then Central Luzon Teachers College (CLTC) and Western Pangasinan College of Agriculture (WPCA).

The DECS institutions were:

Asingan School of Arts and Trades (ASAT) in Asingan;
Eastern Pangasinan Agricultural College (EPAC) in Sta. Maria;
Pangasinan College of Fisheries (PCF) in Binmaley;
Pangasinan School of Arts and Trades (PSAT) in Lingayen; and
Speaker Eugenio Perez National Agricultural School (SEPNAS) in San Carlos City
Institutionally speaking, there were only two institutions that were integrated into the University system, namely, the then Central Luzon Teachers College (CLTC) in Bayambang and the Western Pangasinan College of Agriculture in Infanta. For the other institutions namely, the Asingan School of Arts and Trades (ASAT) in Asingan, Eastern Pangasinan Agriculture College (EPAC) in Sta. Maria, Pangasinan College of Fisheries (PCF) in Binmaley, Pangasinan School of Arts and Trades (PSAT) in Lingayen, and the Speaker Eugenio Perez National Agricultural School (SEPNAS) in San Carlos City, what were integrated into the system were their respective collegiate programs. These said schools are still operating under the administration and supervision of the Department of Education (DepEd) and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA).

Central Luzon Teachers College (CLTC) came into being first as the Bayambang Normal School in 1922. It offered then the secondary normal course which prepared much needed teachers for the country. The school closed in 1935 due to inadequate funds but opened up in 1948 under a new name- Pangasinan Normal School, which offered the two year collegiate teacher education program. It was in 1952-1953 that the college like any other regional normal school began offering the four-year bachelor’s degree program for elementary teachers.

In 1953, the normal school with the elementary schools in the District of Bautista and the Bayambang National High School were merged to become the Philippine UNESCO National Community Training Center. It operated as a school division in Pangasinan.

Republic Act 5705 converted the school into a chartered institution, the then Central Luzon Teachers College on June 21, 1969. As provided in the charter of the college, the major functions of the institution are instruction, research and extension service.

The Western Pangasinan College of Agriculture (WPCA) in Infanta was created through the issuance of Presidential Decree No. 1494 during the same day on June 11,1978 when the charter of the Pangasinan State University was signed into law through Presidential Decree No. 1497.

As the University started its operations in June 1979, it had two Colleges of Agriculture located in Sta. Maria and San Carlos City; two College of Arts and Trades in Lingayen and Asingan; a College of Education in Bayambang; and a College of Fisheries in Binmaley.

In 1981, the College of Agriculture in Infanta (the then Western Pangasinan College of Agriculture created under P.D. 1494) was opened. Art and Science courses were also offered in the College of Education in Bayambang. During the same year also, the land site of the PSU Main Administration was donated by the provincial government of Pangasinan. The following year 1982, the seat of the University Administration was transferred form Bayambang to Lingayen with the completion of the Administration Building. The College of Arts and Sciences was also formally created in Lingayen with the transfer of some courses from Bayambang. The Doctorate in Education (Ed.D.) Program was also offered for the first time to school managers and teachers.

The year 1983 was the opening of the College of Engineering and Technology in Urdaneta as an extension campus of the College of Arts and Technology in Asingan. In 1987, the two campuses were integrated as the College of Engineering and Technology of the Asingan/Urdaneta Complex only to be separated again in 1989. In 1984, the Marine Research Center in Sual, Pangasinan was established.

An alternative mode of instruction was introduced in the University in 1997 which catered to those who could not attend regular classes but would like to undergo formal education. This breakthrough became known as the PSU Open University Systems (PSU-OUS), now an autonomous unit of the University with operations extending to faraway provinces even up to the Visayas area.

The two campuses in Lingayen, fused together in the late 80’s and separated again in 1993, were reunited as one campus in 2001 as the PSU College of Arts, Sciences and Technology (PSU-CAST). This merging is expected to result to a leaner, more efficient and cost-effective operations.

On February 03, 2005, the PSU Board of Regents in its first regular meeting for CY 2005 held at the Office of the President, PSU Main, Lingayen, Pangasinan passed Resolution No. 07, s. 2005 approving the areal integration of PSU Urdaneta, PSU, Sta. Maria and PSU Asingan into the PSU Eastern Cluster. However, the experiment on the cluster was terminated in May 2008. PSU BOR Resolution No. 13 dated May 28, 2008 dissolved the eastern cluster. The three campuses that composed the cluster reverted back to their original status as autonomous campuses.

In 2009, the Sangguniang Panglungsod of the City of Alaminos has favorably endorsed and approved the establishment of Pangasinan State University Campus in the City of Alaminos as contained in Resolution No. 2007-84 adopted on November 16, 2007.

PSU Alaminos City Campus was approved by the PSU Board of Regents sitting en banc on April 19, 2009 at the University Hotel, University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon, City as contained in its Resolution No. 04, series 2009. PSU Alaminos Campus was conceived with the principle that the National and Local Government have the responsibility of ensuring the happiness and well being as well as a stable life of the present generation brought about by a progressing economy and a well developed society that exist within the wider context of the environment that requires the interaction among well educated and value-driven citizens.