The conference explores the making and remaking of apprenticeships as a global historical phenomenon, tracing how pre-industrial craft training evolved under industrialisation, state-building, and changing educational ideas. It focuses both on institutional change and on the lived experiences of apprentices, masters, and other actors, and invites contributions from all periods and world regions.

Topics:

• How do we understand the role of VET in preparing young people for work when labour markets and workplaces are in flux nationally and internationally?
• Is this changing the nature of VET and VET curricula? Is it raising new questions on work, labour markets and education? What is core to VET that is stable across different contexts?
• Are systems looking more similar or more different from each other?
• What are the main factors—such as workplace organisation, changing labour markets, changing enrolment in schools and universities, and the nature of economies that are influencing different aspects of VET provision—such as curriculum, governance, partnerships, enrollment patterns—in different countries?
• How do we connect better as researchers, and use VET research to build connection?

Dates and timeline

• Submission of abstracts: opens 15 October 2026, closes 15 November 2026
• Notification of acceptance: 15 December 2026
• Submission of full paper: 20 February 2027
• Feedback to your paper: 31 March 2027. You will then have 10 days to make the necessaries changes.
• Conference: 18-20 May 2027