Samar State University is an educational landmark of vital importance to the province of Samar. It gives everyone the opportunity to pursue higher education, which is very much needed for vocational proficiency, and individual as well as national development.

Samar Trade School was its name upon establishment in 1912, serving as laboratory shop of the Samar Provincial High School. Made later as a purely secondary trade school, it had its first graduation exercise in 1932. On June 21, 1959, by virtue of Republic Act No.2435, the Samar Trade School was converted to Samar School of Arts and Trades (SSAT). It was authorized to offer a two-year technical curriculum in various vocational courses. Not long after, the school was given the leeway to offer the four-year teacher-education curriculum, Bachelor of Science in Industrial Education (BSIE) and the four-year technical education curriculum, Bachelor of Science in Industrial Technology (BSIT). It expanded its programs to the evening opportunity classes and extension services and masteral level. In 1981, SSAT became one of twenty-three vocational technical institutes in the Philippines to receive the Asian Development Bank of the Philippines-Vocational Technical (ADV-VOC-TECH) counterpart loan of the MECS in the form of equipment for Automotive, Electronics, Civil and Machine Shop Technology. With Batas Pambansa 323 passed on September 7, 1982, and approved on November 18 of the same year, SSAT was converted into the Samar State Polytechnic College (SSPC). From serving as a laboratory shop of a provincial school, it has metamorphosed into a training ground of not only secondary but also tertiary, masteral and doctoral students. Students not only sought their own place in the field of Philippine labor, but also earnestly sought and worked for self-fulfillment, peace and progress for the Philippines.

In October 1999, the Samar Regional School of Fisheries (SRSF) was generated to the college as provided for in Republic Act 8745 and as implemented in the General Appropriation Act of 1999. As recommended by the College Council and later approved by the Board of Trustees, the SRSF became the SSPC Mercedes Campus. As one of its colleges, it is now known as the College of Fisheries and Marine Sciences.

On August 7, 2004, the Samar State Polytechnic College, by virtue of Republic Act 9313, was converted into Samar State University integrating therewith the Wright Vocational School in Paranas, Samar.