From its humble beginning, the university begun in a small one-story small building that only measured 31 meters by 12 meters based on the report by the Philippine Commission. The construction of the building was estimated at ₱19,000 pesos. It was inaugurated in 1912 as Samar Trade School during the incumbency of Governor Vicente Jazmines, serving as the laboratory shop of Samar Provincial High School. It was later converted into an independent secondary trade school. It had it first graduation exercise in 1932.