Chapter 8: The Army Specialized Training Program and “Fast Track” Professional Preparation

The early years of World War II saw an unprecedented collaboration between the United States Armed Forces and institutions of higher education. Shortages of manpower critical to the war effort and declining wartime enrollments in colleges and universities led to military-academic partnerships for rapid preparation of physicians, engineers, and other professionals. One of these partnerships, the Army Specialized Training Program, yields lessons for modern advocates of accelerated professional preparation programs to meet teacher shortages.