One of the challenges that we currently face in achieving universal education is how do we ensure that girls, who have missed the school bus or simply got off the bus too early, can still realise their right to quality basic education? This paper reviews several key education initiatives implemented in the last decade to reach out to the out-of-school children and young women in particularly difficult circumstances through condensed or short-term residential education programmes--also known as "accelerated learning" (AL) programmes. The review indicates that evidence on the ground regarding the impact of the interventions is rather mixed and fragmented. AL programs have provided a much-needed opportunity to learn in a congenial environment characterised by child-centred learning and a multi-dimensional teacher-pupil relationship. Discussions with young women and girls who participated in condensed programmes across the country are revealing--in one voice they all said the experience was valuable and it was their only window into the world of education. However, at the same time programmes are often unable to sustain their achievements through forging of effective multiple linkages with the formal education system to ensure continuous learning. The paper asserts that since the demand for such interventions is increasing, the limitations as well as the potential of AL as a strategy needs to be critically engaged within our quest for achieving universal elementary education. (Contains 8 boxes, 5 tables, and 3 footnotes.)