The entry of the United States into World War II created a serious shortage of engineering talent in that country as men were drafted into the armed forces. To address the shortage, initiatives like GE on-the-job engineering training for women with degrees in mathematics and physics and the Curtiss-Wright Engineering Program among others created new opportunities for women in engineering. Curtiss-Wright partnered with Cornell, Penn State, Purdue, the University of Minnesota, the University of Texas, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and Iowa State University to create an engineering curriculum that lasted ten months and focused primarily on aircraft design and production.[1]