The historical development of VET in the Nordic countries have not gained much attention within the field of VET research. It is sometimes acknowledged that the skilled workers in the Nordic countries have contributed to its economic success, but not much more than that. Whether or not a specific Nordic model exist in education is contested. Often it is associated with social democracy and the comprehensive school or the early formation of a universal public school systems. Other observers state that the Nordic countries have been marked by cultures in which small social distances, autonomy and nationalism have been mixed with respect for skills and knowledge and broad international orientations . The paper discusses commonalities and differences in the formation of VET in the Nordic countries, their historical development trajectories in light of more general models. Do they form a more or less haphazard path, or can commonalities between the cases belonging to a specified region be identified ? Last but not can commonalities be revealed compared to other European cases in general and the notion of collective skill formation systems in particular?

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