On October 5, 1913 , a group of four young men and a woman, with ages from fifteen to twenty-one met for breakfast at the Palmade Mallorca, a popular restaurant beside the Sto. Domingo Church in Intramuros, Manila. The five were Apolinario G. de los Santos , his brother, Mariano V. de los Santos , his sister, Maria de los Santos, and two friends Buenaventura J. Bello and Manuel Montilla. They were only college students then, who were more daring than their contemporaries for they were determined to pursue their dream of putting up a school suited to the needs of the Filipino youth. These impecunious young people, as they were called by the university historian, encountered many challenges in realizing their dream of establishing an institution whose motto was “Patria, Scientia, et Virtus.” They named their school Instituto de Manila, after the city of their affection and ApolinarioG. de los Santos was elected as the first director of the school. The doors of the Instituto de Manila first opened in school year 1914-1915. The forerunner of this institution offered only elementary and high school courses in a leased building at the corner of Madrid and Penarubia streets, Binondo District. However, in school year 1919-1920, in ...order to accommodate its growing populace and to provide them with better facilities, the Instito de Manila started conducting classes in its own building in the Sampaloc District. Before embarking on a program of expansion in order to meet the educational needs of its constituency, the Instituto de Manila had to undergo internal changes. On the occasion of its eight anniversary, the original incorporators unanimously agreed to effect a reorganization geared towards the attainment of a university status. As a result, the Instituto de Manila was re-incorporated as the University of Manila on November 3,1921 under the provisions of Act No. 1459 of the former Philippine Legislature. Right after its re-incorporation, the University focused on providing more course offerings for their growing clientele. The growth and expansion marked the turning point of this democratic and dynamic institution which has withstood the test of time. The University has survived two world wars and the bewildering changes in the country and of the world: ideological, social, economic, and political. The mustard seed that was the University of Manila continues to show impressive growth and expansion.

In March 12, 1919, the College of Law was organized and was given government recognition on November 1, 1920. It was formally incorporated with the University during the academic year 1921-1922. Barely, after two years of its founding, the College of Law caught public attention and gained popular acclaim when two of its graduates: Pablo Payawal, who later became a prominent law practitioner, and Jose Carlos, who became a judge, copped the first and second places, respectively, in the 1920 Bar Examinations. Three years later, former Civil Service Commissioner Amado del Rosario and Cipriano Primicias who became a majority floor leader in the defunct Senate and who was one of the vice-presidential nominees for the 1961 national elections, followed suit by garnering the second and sixth places, respectively, in the 1922 Bar Examinations. And during the three years that followed, the graduates of the College easily hurdled the Bar with 100 percent passing average. This achievement of the College was so impressive that the pre-war Tribune and Philippine Herald newspapers were all praises for the University of Manila. In 1933, Lope Quimbo, Manuel Alvero, and Guillermo Blanco became the first, second, and tenth placers in the Bar Examinations respectively. In 1936, the College again produced another batch of topnotchers where Teodorico Martin was the sixth placer who became the Dean of the College of Law of the University of the East. Again, in 1937, Sixto Domondon copped the tenth place in the Bar Examinations.To continue, in 1938, Emmanuel Pelaez, who was to become Vice-President of the Philippines, led that year's Bar Examinations "elite" by copping the first place.

With Emmanuel Pelaez there were also two topnotchers, namely Rodegelio Jalandoni, sixth placer, and Pedro Bacerro, the seventh placer in the Bar Examinations. In 1940, the College again had a fourth placer in the Bar, in the person of Delfin De Vera. During the post-war years, the College of Law reasserted its Bar supremacy by producing topnotchers. In 1948, Jose M. Evangelista, who was to become ambassador, placed second and established a record high rating of 95.04 percent. Moreover, this feat was duplicated in 1949 by Dominador R. Aytona who also captured second honors. Aytona became a vice-presidential nominee in 1961 under the Nacionalista Party banner. Two years later, in 1951, Vicente Acsay kept up the excellent performance of the College by notching the first place in the Bar Examinations. The good showing of the College continued, for in 1953, Leonardo Amores, who was to become the illustrious faculty member of the College hit the same spot with the highest rating of 95.03 percent. Up to the present year, the College of Law graduates fared very well in the bar examinations with ratings above the national passing percentage. In 2006, the College of Law graduates obtained a 75 percent passing in the Bar Examinations, again probing the quality of education sustained throughout the years by the University of Manila. To show the march to progress of the University, in 1920, the College of Liberal Arts offered courses and in 1922-1923, three more colleges were established, namely: the College of Philosophy and Letters, the College of Education and the College of Business Administration . In school year 1941-1942, the Department of Graduate Studies was opened and in December, 1945, the College of Engineering offered courses. The following year in 1946, courses were offered by the Academy of Music and the School of Foreign Service. In 1949, courses wereoffered in Master of Arts in Political Science in the Department of Graduate Studies, followed by the opening of Master of Arts in History and Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education in 1951. Then from 1963 to 1966, courses in the College of Criminology and Penology, the School of Secretarial Science and the master’s degree in Public Administration were offered. On June 7, 1976 , the following two-year courses were offered–in Police Science and Technology, in Library Science and in Bookkeeping; One-year course in Hotel and Restaurant Management and one-year course in Tourism. The sustainable growth and expansion of the University were the products of the highly innovative, creative, and brilliant minds of those who occupied the presidency. Dr. Apolinario de los Santos was the University president from its inception until 1927. His successor was Dr. Mariano V. de los Santos, who assumed the presidency at the age of 29, and it is a matter of record and source of pardonable pride that he held the distinction of being the youngest university president in the Philippines, in Asia, and in the whole world. He was president of the university until his untimely demise on October 13, 1959. The unfinished task of leading the University was continued by Madame Helende los Santos, who was described by the late Dr. Mariano V. de los Santos in his book, Education and Life as his life partner “who has shared with me all the tribulations of life but cared little for its vainglories.” One of the pioneers in education and a complete Filipino woman, Madame Helen de los Santos held the presidency with distinction from 1959 to 1981. Another chapter in UM history unfolded when Dr. Virgilio de los Santos (from the second generation of the de los Santoses) took over the presidency in 1981. With him the helm, the University continually strived to strengthen its commitment to total academic excellence. The University has remained true to its trilogyof ideals: Patria, Scientia, et Virtus. Its Vission and Mission Statements read: VISION--The University of Manila strives to strengthen its resolve and commitment to academic excellence by competing with other schools, locally and internationally, using modern technology in education. MISSION --The University of Manila aims to teach love of country, love of science, and love of virtue and to make the life for others better, brighter, lighter, and more livable. Under the vigilant stewardship of Dr. Virgilio de los Santos , the University has been placed to a higher level of credit and standard. In line with the thrusts of the government and to keep abreast with the demands of the modern times, on February 16, 1994 , the University offered Four-year courses in Hotel and Restaurant Management and Computer Science. To show further that the University of Manila in response to the call of the 90's, has come of age. In response to the call of the 90’s, on February 21, 1994, it offered new courses in the following programs: Doctor of Education, Doctor of Public Administration, and Master of Business Administration. These programs are designed to provide administrators, businessmen, analysts, researchers, and educators with the theoretical background, competencies, and skills for them to be able to participate and contribute to the growth and development of a better and humane society. On April 3, 2003, the University was granted the government permit to offer the four-year Bachelor of Arts in Cultural Languages, major in Japanese Language.

The University of Manila is the first university in the Philippines recognized to offer a degree course in the Japanese Language. It was also during the incumbency of Dr. Virgilio de los Santos that on November 7, 2005, the International Language School (ILS) was established and a new four-storey building was constructed for the said school. The International Language School offers courses in the English language to foreign students like the Chinese, Japanese, and Koreans. It also offered courses in the Chinese language and (Nippongo) language. The International Language School building likewise provides accomodations for foreign students while they are studying. Thus, with these developments, the leaders of the University continually strived to realize the vision and mission of the institution and, that is, academic excellence imbued with values, not only for the Filipino youth but also for the youth of our neighboring countries. In 2006, Dr. Emily Dodson de Leon was elected by the Board of Trustees as president of the University of Manila for five years. She is also the Chief Academic Officer of the University. At the same time, she is the first vice-president of PACU (Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities) school year 2007-2008. It should be noted that the University of Manila is one of the founders of this prestigious association. With her dynamic administration and dauntless leadership, the University has remained to be an institution to reckon with. She is the vital mover behind the sustainable progress of the University by initiating innovations and modern strategies in promoting quality education and these are shown when the University was granted by PACUCOA an accredited status for the College of Education for its two programs: Bachelor in Secondary Education and Bachelor in Elementary Education and the College of Business Administration. Likewise, awards of recognition were given by the Professional Regulation Commission, Philippine Association of Professional Regulatory Board Members, Inc., and the Foundation for Outstanding Professionals, Inc. and the Philippine Federation of Professional Associations, Inc. to the College of Criminology for obtaining the highest number of board passers in Criminology for two consecutive years: 2007-2008 and 2008-2009. In addition to the numerous scholarship programs of the institution, President Emily Dodson de Leon created the Dr. Emily D. de Leon Scholarship Program whose recipients are students from poor families of the country. Through her indefatigable work, the University maintains productive and continuing linkages with Japan for scholarship programs, the NGOs, and with the Philippine goverment, both local and national. At present, Madame Emily Dodson de Leon, with her foresight and vision for greatness, has been working to make the University of Manila, an autonomous institution and a center of excellence in the field of education. Notably, the University of Manila is an active member of the Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities (PACU), Association of Southeast Asian Institutions of Higher Learning(ASAIHL), Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities Commission on Accreditation (PACUCOA), Philippine Association of Teacher Education (PAFTE), Philippine Society for Educational Research and Evaluation (PSERE), the University Belt Consortium, and the International Association of Universities. From 1913 to 2008, for ninety-five years, the University of Manila has served not only the Filipino youth but also those students of other countries who have chosen this institution as their second home in their educational pursuit. In this third millennium, the University of Manila will be celebrating its centennial in 2013. This highly indicates that the University is a formidable institution that has been able to withstand the test and rigors of time--andlooking forward in its synergistic and excellent service to mankind through quality education.