The Visayas State University - Tolosa Campus traces its humble beginnings to the former Daniel Z. Romualdez Memorial School of Fisheries (DZRMSF) established on June 21, 1969 pursuant to Republic Act No. 5784. The school opened on September 11, 1971 with only four (4) faculty members and offered Diploma in Fisheries Technology and the ladderized Bachelor of Science in Fisheries with majors in Fish Processing, Inland Fisheries and Marine Fisheries. In August 14 1991, Daniel Z. Romualdez Memorial School of Fisheries (DZRMFS) became Leyte State School of Fisheries (LSSF) pursuant to Republic Act No. 7105. Ten (10) years hence, August 11, 2001, it was integrated to Leyte State University (LSU) System, pursuant to Republic Act 9158 and was named as College of Fisheries LSU-Tolosa Campus. On August 27, 2007 pursuant to Republic Act 9437, LSU finally became the Visayas State University. Thus LSU-Tolosa Campus became VSU-Tolosa with Bachelor of Science in Fisheries as the flagship program and the sole Curriculum of the Fisheries Department.

VSU-Tolosa extends beyond the confines of the ten (10) hectares nestled in Brgy. Tanghas, Tolosa, Leyte to promote quality education and continue soaring to greater heights of breakthroughs and achievements. On August 14, 2009 VSU-Tolosa was awarded as the National University/College of Fisheries (NUFS) with the National Agriculture and Fisheries Education System (NAFES) program of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED).

Today, the National University for Fisheries in the region offers Bachelor of Science in Fisheries, Bachelor of Secondary Education, Bachelor of Elementary Education, and Bachelor of Science in Criminology. The BS Criminology Curriculum was approved as a special program of the Visayas State University - Tolosa Campus by the VSU Board of Regents in June 2008.