TL;DR: University of Cagayan Valley (UCV) in Tuguegarao City started in 1948 as Cagayan Teachers College and became a full university in 2010 under CHED Resolution No. 186-2010. It's private and non-sectarian, offering around 30 programs across health, maritime, engineering, IT, law, criminology, business, and education, with several PACUCOA-accredited programs. Its College of Health posted an 85.45% passing rate in the May 2024 nursing board exam, beating the 74.94% national average. UCV does not publish a public tuition schedule, so confirm current rates directly with the registrar.
Introduction
If you're researching colleges in Tuguegarao or the wider Cagayan Valley, University of Cagayan Valley (UCV) is one of the first names that comes up alongside Cagayan State University and University of Saint Louis Tuguegarao. It's a private, non-sectarian institution with nearly 80 years of history in the region, and it has built a specific reputation around maritime education, nursing, and IT.
This guide pulls together what's actually verifiable about University of Cagayan Valley: where it came from, what it teaches, how admission works, and what's known (and not known) about its costs. If a fact isn't published anywhere official, we say so rather than guess a number.
What Is the History of University of Cagayan Valley?
UCV traces back to April 1948, when Dr. Matias Ponce Perez, Sr. founded Cagayan Teachers College to address a shortage of teachers in the region after World War II, at a time when getting a college education meant traveling to Manila. The school began with elementary teacher's certificates and a Bachelor of Science in Education, then expanded over the decades into Cagayan Colleges Tuguegarao.
University status came through CHED Resolution No. 186-2010, and the first university assembly was held on July 19, 2010. Dr. Victor V. Perez was installed as UCV's first university president that September, a role he held for roughly 40 years across the institution's history. The current president, Dr. Esther Susan N. Perez-Mari, is UCV's first female president and now oversees a student body reported at around 17,600 students with about 636 employees, spread across two campuses covering roughly 8 hectares.
What Programs Does UCV Offer?
UCV runs close to 30 recognized programs, spanning three doctorate degrees, four master's degrees, and 21 baccalaureate degrees, plus certificate and technical tracks. Its colleges and schools include:
| College / School | Focus Area |
|---|---|
| College of Health | Nursing, midwifery |
| College of Maritime Education & College of Marine Transportation | Marine deck/engineering officers |
| College of Engineering | Civil, electrical, mechanical |
| College of Computer Engineering and IT | Computer engineering, IT |
| College of Law | Law degree |
| College of Hotel and Restaurant Management | Hospitality |
| School of Criminology | BS Criminology (CHED-reaccredited) |
| School of Business Education | Business administration |
| School of Arts and Sciences and Teacher Education | Liberal arts, education |
| Graduate School | Master's and doctoral programs |
Its BS Criminology program is among five programs holding Level III 1st Reaccredited status from PACUCOA, and UCV was deputized by CHED back in 2002 to run the Expanded Tertiary Education Equivalency and Accreditation Program (ETEEAP) for working professionals. Maritime programs, meanwhile, run under a quality system aligned to ISO 9001:2015 and DNV GL Standard 0029, a certification specific to maritime training institutions.
Between 2019 and 2022, UCV was recognized for having the most PACUCOA-accredited programs in Region 2, and the school separately holds ISO 9001:2015 certification from the British Standards Institution.
Disclaimer: program offerings, tracks, and accreditation status can shift by school year. Confirm current offerings with UCV's admissions office before enrolling.
How Much Is Tuition at University of Cagayan Valley?
UCV does not publish a specific tuition fee schedule on its official website, and no education aggregator or news source we checked has a verified current rate either. What is publicly stated is that costs vary by program, year level, and number of units, and that laboratory-heavy programs (nursing, engineering, maritime) tend to run higher than non-laboratory courses. SchoolFinderPH's own listing places UCV in the mid price tier relative to other schools in the Cagayan Valley region, based on internal data rather than a published fee schedule.
If tuition is your deciding factor, call the registrar directly at (078) 844 1147, or ask the admissions office for a current fee assistance/payment terms breakdown before you commit.
Disclaimer: tuition and fees change every school year. Always verify current rates with the school directly rather than relying on any third-party estimate, including this one.
What Are the Admission Requirements?
UCV maintains a dedicated admissions section covering entrance requirements, scholarships offered, and payment terms, though the detailed checklist (e.g., specific document lists per program) isn't fully itemized in public search results. As with most Philippine private colleges, expect the standard baseline: senior high school completion (or ALS equivalent), Form 138/report card, good moral character certificate, PSA birth certificate, and for some programs, an entrance or placement assessment.
Because UCV runs both K-12 and college-level programs on the same campus footprint, transferees and shiftees should also expect standard credential evaluation for units earned elsewhere. For the current checklist, go through UCV's admissions office rather than third-party guides, since requirements can change between intake periods.
How Does UCV Perform in Board Exams?
The clearest verifiable data point is UCV's College of Health nursing licensure results: in the May 2024 Philippine Nurse Licensure Examination, UCV recorded 37 passers at an 85.45% passing rate, ahead of the 74.94% national passing rate for that exam round. That's a meaningful gap and one of the more concrete performance signals available for the school.
We could not independently verify UCV's board exam results for other licensure programs (criminology, engineering, etc.) or for exam rounds after May 2024 through public sources at the time of writing. If board exam performance matters to your decision, ask the relevant college directly for their latest passing rate and compare it against the current national average published by the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC).
How to Choose Between UCV and Other Tuguegarao Schools
Tuguegarao has more than one serious option, including the public Cagayan State University and the Catholic University of Saint Louis Tuguegarao. A few practical questions to weigh:
- Program strength. If you want maritime education or nursing, UCV's track record (ISO-aligned maritime programs, above-average nursing board results) is a real point in its favor.
- Budget certainty. Since UCV doesn't publish tuition online, get a written quote before enrollment if cost predictability matters to you.
- Accreditation status. Ask which specific program you're entering holds PACUCOA accreditation, since accreditation is granted per-program, not university-wide.
- Campus and commute. UCV's Balzain, Tuguegarao City location and its two-campus footprint matter if you're commuting versus boarding.
For a broader look at what else is available in the city, see our Tuguegarao schools directory. If cost is your primary concern anywhere in the country, our guide to affordable colleges in the Philippines breaks down free-tuition state school options. And if you're weighing private K-12 options in the same city, check our roundup of best private schools in Tuguegarao.
Ready to find the right school? Browse schools or compare tuition and reviews across hundreds of Philippine schools on SchoolFinderPH.
