Central Philippine University in Jaro, Iloilo City publishes two different programme lists on its own website, and they do not agree. One is headed "Academic Programs (for School Year 2026-2027)". The other, older page is not year-stamped and still carries five degrees the newer list drops. That gap is the first thing you need to know before you build a shortlist.
For CPU's address, contacts and level flags, see the Central Philippine University profile. This post is about what CPU teaches and how you get in.
The current list, by college
Everything below comes from CPU's year-stamped academic programmes page for school year 2026-2027.
College of Agriculture, Resources and Environmental Sciences
- BS Agriculture
- BS Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering
- BS Environmental Management
CPU flags this college as PAASCU-accredited at Level II and as a CHED-NAFES Provincial Institute for Agriculture.
College of Arts and Sciences
- Bachelor of Arts in English Language Studies
- BS Biology, specialisation in Medical Biology
- BS Biology, specialisation in Microbiology
- BS Chemistry
- BS Psychology
- BS Social Work
College of Business and Accountancy
- BS Accountancy
- BS Management Accounting
- BS Business Administration, major in Human Resource Management
- BS Business Administration, major in Financial Management
- BS Business Administration, major in Marketing Management
- BS Entrepreneurship
CPU splits Management Accounting out as its own degree rather than folding it under BSBA. Accountancy is the one here with a licensure exam at the end; the BS Accountancy guide covers what the CPA route demands.
College of Computer Studies
- BS Computer Science
- BS Digital Media and Interactive Arts
- BS Information Technology
- Bachelor in Library and Information Science
The college lists CISCO Networking Academy and ORACLE Academic Initiative partnerships. Librarianship sitting inside a computing college is a deliberate choice and it does still lead to the Librarian Licensure Examination.
College of Education
- Bachelor of Early Childhood Education
- Bachelor of Elementary Education
- Bachelor of Physical Education
- Bachelor of Secondary Education, majors in English, Filipino, Mathematics, Science and Special Needs Education
College of Engineering
- BS Chemical Engineering
- BS Civil Engineering
- BS Electrical Engineering
- BS Electronics Engineering
- BS Mechanical Engineering
- BS Packaging Engineering
- BS Software Engineering
- Diploma in Packaging Technology (study plan for DOST scholars)
CPU describes the college as PAASCU-accredited and a DOST School for Western Visayas. Packaging Engineering is the outlier here. Very few Philippine universities confer it, and unlike Civil or Mechanical it does not have its own PRC licensure examination. Software Engineering is also a distinct CHED programme from Computer Science, not a rebrand of it.
College of Hospitality Management
- BS Hospitality Management
- BS Tourism Management
College of Medical Laboratory Science
- BS Medical Laboratory Science
College of Nursing
- BS Nursing (PAASCU-accredited)
College of Pharmacy
- BS Pharmacy
College of Theology
- Bachelor of Theology
- Certificate in Christian Ministry
- Diploma in Christian Ministry
Accredited by ATESEA, the Association for Theological Education in South East Asia.
College of Law
- Juris Doctor
College of Medicine
- Doctor of Medicine
- BS Respiratory Therapy
Basic education and senior high
CPU runs a full basic-education ladder: Kindergarten, Elementary School, Junior High School (a DOST/ESEP Division Leader School) and Senior High School. The senior high strands published are ABM, HUMSS and STEM. There is no TVL or Arts and Design strand on the list, which matters if you were planning to feed into a technical programme. Our SHS tracks and strands explainer sets out what each strand actually opens up.
Graduate programmes
The School of Graduate Studies carries an unusually wide spread for a regional university:
- Doctor of Management in Business Management, Public Management, Development Management, and Tourism and Hospitality Management
- Doctor of Ministry in Pastoral Counseling and Pastoral Supervision, and in Church Management and Practical Ministries
- Doctor of Education in Curriculum and Instruction, Educational Administration and Supervision, and Guidance and Counseling
- Master of Divinity, Master of Theology, Master of Ministry, MA Pastoral Counseling
- MA Education in Educational Administration and Supervision, Guidance and Counseling, Mathematics, Filipino, and English Language and Literature
- MS Agriculture
- Master in Business Administration, with and without thesis, plus an MBA major in Tourism and Hospitality Management
- MA Nursing in Nursing Service Administration, Adult Health Nursing, and Women and Child Health Nursing
- Master in Public Administration
- MS Guidance and Counseling
- MS Teaching Biology
Where the two lists disagree
CPU's undated Undergraduate Programs page still lists five degrees that the school-year 2026-2027 page does not:
| Degree on the older page | On the SY 2026-2027 list? |
|---|---|
| Bachelor of Arts in Communication | No |
| Bachelor of Arts in Political Science | No |
| Bachelor of Arts major in Political Science and Public Administration | No |
| Bachelor of Science major in Mathematics | No |
| BS Advertising (College of Business and Accountancy) | No |
| Bachelor in Sports Match Analysis (College of Education) | No |
The 2026-2027 list also names BS Biology with a Medical Biology specialisation and adds BSBA major in Human Resource Management, neither of which appear on the older page, and it splits Entrepreneurship out from BSBA.
There is no announcement on the CPU site explaining the difference, so this could be phase-outs, a stale page, or both. The safe reading: treat the year-stamped list as authoritative and email the relevant college before you count on anything that only appears on the older page. If you were specifically after communication or political science in Iloilo, ask CPU directly rather than assuming from a course-directory site.
How admission works
Entry runs through the CPU College Aptitude Test (CPUCAT). CPU describes it as a standardised test of college readiness that also helps guide course selection, and requires it of all incoming college freshmen plus transfer students, shiftees and other applicants as the university deems necessary.
What CPU publishes about the process:
- Pay the testing fee first. CPU lists ₱450.00 non-refundable for on-campus and off-campus testing, and ₱3,000.00 for international applicants taking the online CPUCAT. Payment goes through the CPU Business Office, online banking, or Palawan Express, with the purpose written as "CPUCAT Fee".
- Fill out the CPUCAT online application form.
- Wait for an email confirmation from CPU with your schedule.
- Take the test on the confirmed date. Bring a valid school ID or government-issued ID matching the one in your application, and a hard copy or printed screenshot of the official receipt. CPU states that failing to bring the receipt makes you ineligible to sit. Bring a No. 2 pencil with eraser; online international takers need a computer and a stable connection. Arrive thirty minutes early.
- Results are released roughly two weeks after the test date, by email. CPU directs applicants who do not receive them to check spam and then contact the CPUCAT results address.
CPU schedules the CPUCAT across many Friday and Saturday batches through the year rather than on one national date, and it publishes the schedule for the coming cycle on the CPUCAT page. The exact dates change every year, so take them from that page and nowhere else. For how CPU's test compares to other private-university entrance exams, see entrance exams in the Philippines compared.
Foreign applicants
CPU runs a separate track for foreign students through a designated Liaison Officer for Foreign Students in the Registrar's office, reachable at [email protected]. The published guidelines apply across every level, from Kindergarten through Senior High School, the college programmes, and the post-graduate programmes including the J.D., graduate studies and Medicine.
New foreign applicants already based in Iloilo City set an appointment with the liaison officer about requirements and submit a barangay clearance dated at least fifteen days before enrolment. Continuing foreign students submit a photocopy or scan of all passport pages showing travel history and check their visa status with the same office.
CPU also states that its online-class arrangements exist to accommodate students who cannot be physically present, that classes revert to a flexible learning modality combining face-to-face and online when CHED prescribes it, and that students outside Iloilo City will then be notified to report to campus. Compliance with student visa requirements resumes on Bureau of Immigration orders. If you are applying from abroad, our international student requirements guide covers the visa side.
What CPU does not publish
Readable tuition figures. The Tuition and Fees page is organised into Collegiate, Senior High School and Pre-Collegiate sections headed for SY 2026-2027, but the amounts are inside images, not page text. Anyone quoting a precise CPU per-semester figure online is estimating. Ask the Business Office. If cost is the deciding factor, our affordable colleges guide is a better starting point than a scraped number.
CPUCAT coverage and cut-off scores. CPU does not publish the subject breakdown, item count, time limit or any per-programme cut-off. It describes the test only as standardised and aptitude-based.
Programme-level quotas. Nothing on the site states how many slots each college takes, or whether high-demand programmes like Nursing and Medical Laboratory Science screen further after the CPUCAT. Ask the college.
Sources
- Central Philippine University, Academic Programs (for School Year 2026-2027): https://cpu.edu.ph/all-programs/
- Central Philippine University, Undergraduate Programs: https://cpu.edu.ph/undergraduate-programs/
- Central Philippine University, CPU College Aptitude Test (CPUCAT): https://cpu.edu.ph/cpu-college-aptitude-test-cpucat/
- Central Philippine University, Tuition and Fees: https://cpu.edu.ph/tuition-and-fees/
- Central Philippine University, Academics index and college pages: https://cpu.edu.ph/academics/
- Central Philippine University, Guidelines for the Admission of Foreign Students: https://cpu.edu.ph/registrar/guidelines-for-the-admission-of-foreign-students/
