In this paper we question the - often discussed - assumption that dual VET (Vocational Education and Training) was a German “invention”, as well as a deliberate decision “on the drawing board”, by which school and work-place learning work together. This concept is often attributed to scholars like Georg Kerschensteiner and others, mainly from the German-speaking countries in Europe. However, the reconstruction of the origins and developments of VET in Germany and Switzerland reveals that (re-)implementing apprenticeships as the basic model behind dual VET was the decisive element. Hereby,  VET is seen in a traditional way of skill formation, realigning it to medieval practices, above all in small, mainly craft enterprises.

In Germany, economic and social policy in the late 19^th century, referring to the so-called “Mittelstand” (small and middle-sized companies), led to a number of changes of the trade law in which apprenticeship regulations were newly incorporated, with features still visible in the training legislation of today. The links with vocational schools became more and more visible, but remained weak until the late 1920s and 1930s, although the common notion was the “Beruf” (occupation) as a guiding principle for both learning venues. This is the time when formal examinations became universal in the apprenticeship system and compulsion to attend a vocational school was introduced on a national level.

In Switzerland, the current dual system emerged from training legislation the 1930s. Most important were the activities of the state and the exchange with interest groups like SME associations and the unions, but also the regional and local authorities and schools. Mandatory schooling for all apprentices during the day (not in the evening), financial support of schools in case they vocationalize their curricula, and formal examinations at the end of paved the way for a dual system, which was established in all branches on a national level. An exposed role was on the side of associations in pushing forward new concepts of training and convincing the public to adhere to such a VET model.

The paper sketches developments in the two countries between 1870-1970 by pointing out differences and commonalities with a specific focus on the role of associations and chambers and the emerging links between schools and companies making them to "dual systems".

The methodology of our paper comprises a wide range of analyzed (historical) monographies, documents, pamphlets and articles in journals dealing with claims to enlarge school attandance and reform vocational education and training in order to transform a guild-based apprenticehsip towards a modern VET system, which is supplemented by specific knowledge, acquired in schools. Furthermore we also reconstruct the discourse on establishing a VET system based on apprenticeship in the long 20th century referring to policy papers and discussions around legislations of VET. This approach is based on an interdisciplinary perspective in the tradition of path-dependency, historical vocational pedagogy and historical discourse analysis. After a review of existing accounts on the role of German/Swiss apprenticeships and the role of reform-pedagogues in the beginning of the 20th Century we highlight the role of actors (employers associations, unions, teachers, parents and learners(/apprentices) in order to encompass a multi-faceted developmental perspective.

The dual systems of Germany and Switzerland both have a complex history as different streams in their evolution come together. Their evolution is more than just a product of deliberate decisions but has to be looked at beyond the perspective of the learning location. Both systems developed more evolutionary and path-dependent. Hereby, the legal framework in both countries, which today integrates quite a large segment of initial vocational training from agriculture to the service sector, is based on and corresponds with a shared interest among diverse stakeholders in the value of VET in general and dual apprenticeships in particular as an alternative to higher education. Understanding this complexity helps us understand that both systems - despite current problems - are still comparatively stable and resilient to major changes.

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