EXPLAINER: Why UST—not USC in Cebu—holds the title of Asia’s oldest university

The debate over Asia’s oldest university.

For decades, one of the fiercest academic rivalries in the Philippines has had nothing to do with sports, board exam rankings, or research output.

Instead, it revolves around a deceptively simple question: Which university is the oldest in Asia?

The University of San Carlos (USC) in Cebu proudly traces its roots to 1595 through the Jesuit-run Colegio de San Ildefonso. If that date is accepted, USC would not only be older than the University of Santo Tomas (UST), which was founded in 1611—it would also be one of the oldest educational institutions in the continent.

Yet historians, government agencies, and academic experts overwhelmingly recognize UST as Asia’s oldest existing university.

Why?

The answer lies in a concept more important than age itself: continuity.

The school that closed its doors

The biggest obstacle to USC’s claim is the fate of Colegio de San Ildefonso.

Founded by Jesuit missionaries in 1595, the school operated for more than a century before the Spanish Crown expelled the Jesuits from its colonies in the 1760s.

In 1769, the institution ceased operations.

Not paused. Not relocated. Not renamed.

It closed.

For historians, that distinction is crucial.

A school’s age is not determined solely by the year a building was first occupied. It is measured by whether the institution itself continued to exist through time.

A new school in an old building

Years after the closure of Colegio de San Ildefonso, the property was turned over to the Diocese of Cebu.

A new institution, the Seminario-Colegio de San Carlos, was established on the site.

This is where the controversy begins.

USC argues that it inherited the tradition of the older institution. Critics argue that inheriting a campus is not the same as inheriting a continuous institutional existence.

To put it another way: if a new restaurant opens in a century-old building, it does not automatically become a century-old restaurant.

The structure may be old, but the business is new.

Many historians apply the same logic to USC.

UST’s unbroken timeline

UST’s claim, meanwhile, rests on something historians value highly: uninterrupted operation.

Founded on April 28, 1611 as the Colegio de Nuestra Señora del Santísimo Rosario, UST has remained in continuous operation for more than four centuries.

It survived wars, fires, colonial transitions, revolutions, and world conflicts without losing its institutional identity.

In 1645, it was elevated to university status by Pope Innocent X, becoming one of the earliest universities in Asia.

The charter, administration, academic tradition, and institutional lineage remained intact throughout its history.

That uninterrupted chain is what separates UST from competing claims.

Even some cebuano historians agree

Perhaps the most surprising aspect of the debate is that several Cebu-based historians and church scholars have acknowledged the weakness of USC’s claim.

Among them is Fr. Aloysius Cartagenas, who has argued that occupying the former site of Colegio de San Ildefonso does not automatically transfer the original institution’s age and identity.

The issue, he and other scholars argue, is not about prestige but historical accuracy.

Why continuity matters

The debate ultimately comes down to a question historians ask all the time:

When does an institution stop being itself?

If a school closes permanently, loses its charter, dissolves its administration, and is later replaced by another institution, can it still claim the original founding date?

For most historians, the answer is no.

That is why the National Historical Commission of the Philippines and numerous academic studies recognize UST—not USC—as the oldest existing university in Asia.

USC remains one of the country’s most respected educational institutions, with a rich history stretching back centuries.

But when it comes to the title of Asia’s oldest university, historians say the crown belongs to UST—not because it is older on paper, but because it never stopped being itself.

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