What happens when Initial Teacher Education shifts focus from preparing teachers as change agents to focusing on fast-tracking candidates into the profession? In this paper, we focus on the implications of the accelerated push in teacher education for key social justice and transformative aims of preparing critically reflective, culturally responsive teachers. We tease out what these emerging priorities mean for work of capacity-building for equity, diversity and social justice in teaching and teacher education. We unpack how alternative teacher education programmes that prioritise "employment" present both caveats and opportunities in this regard. We conclude by suggesting ways to harness existing challenges in the service of closer alliances between teacher educators, school staff, members of communities and the education departments for preparing a teaching workforce capable of responding to the needs of their students.