I read through the whole final rule. Here is my summary:
- Prospective students will get their medicals from the AME like usual. These will NOT have "and Student Pilot Certificate" printed on them.
- They will have to apply for a Student Pilot Certificate using IACRA and routed through one of several people, the most likely one being their CFI (DPEs, FSDO ASIs and others are possible as well).
- The application will be routed by the FAA through TSA for security checks.
- The student will then get a plastic Student Pilot Certificate that looks like the other pilot certificates.
- Student Pilot Certificates will not expire.
- The original proposal for a photo on all pilot certificates is rescinded.
- There will be no cost (just like current pilot certificates).
What's going to have to happen for accelerated training courses is advanced planning. You meet with the CFI a few weeks before you plan to start training, so that the Student Pilot certificate processing doesn't delay you.
Also, the NPRM came out in 2010 and was really part of the larger "photo ID" proposal, so it's no surprise that many of us either haven't heard of it or completely forgot about it. AOPA did actually provide comments. See article from 2011:
http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/FAATold_PhotoIDsDontFly_204156-1.html
They just removed the photo ID part but kept much of the rest.