The new Italian initial teacher education pathways (PF30, PF36 and PF60) have reshaped access to secondary teaching, but their first implementation also revealed structural tensions. Focusing on chemistry education (A034), this paper discusses time compression, overlap with school work, heterogeneous participant profiles, disciplinary fragilities and the strategic role of practicum. Special attention is devoted to the territorial distribution of authorized places and to the balance between public/state universities and private/online providers. While online environments may increase accessibility and flexibility for in-service participants, chemistry teacher education also requires strong disciplinary teaching, laboratory infrastructures, safety culture and specialized staff. The paper argues that the quality of initial training should therefore be assessed not only in terms of access, but also in terms of disciplinary depth, tutorial support and integration with real school contexts.