Benguet State University is nestled in the heart of La Trinidad, Benguet, the strawberry capital of the Philippines.

It started as the La Trinidad Farm School with 30 grade V pupils in 1916. The Farm School expanded its services and heightened its prominence in La Trinidad. According to earlier reports, the Farm School was “planned to develop into a large normal school where the best Igorot pupils will be trained to be teachers among their own people with emphasis on agriculture.”

In 1920, the farm school was elevated as the Trinidad Agricultural School with 188 students enrolled in first year high school. Re-opening after the war in 1946, the school became the La Trinidad Agricultural High School. Four years later, a provincial normal curriculum was abolished in 1953 and a two-year post-high school certificate in agricultural education was offered.

The school was renamed La Trinidad National Agricultural School (LTNAS). After four months, it was nationalized and named the Mountain National Agricultural School. (MNAS). It was soon converted into the Mountain National College (MNAC); Mountain Agricultural College (MAC); and eventually, the Mountain State Agricultural College (MSAC) in 1969 through RA 5923.

On January 12, 1986, the college was converted to a state university by virtue of Presidential Decree (PD) No. 2010 signed by President Ferdinand E. Marcos.

At present BSU is awarded SUC Level IV, the highest category in the SUC leveling classification of State Universities and Colleges by the Commission on Higher Education.