Associate degree programs produced 89,549 of the 192,916 first-time, US-educated candidates who sat the NCLEX-RN in 2025, or about 46.4% of the country’s new registered nurse pipeline (NCSBN, 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics). That share has edged up for three straight years, even as AACN-surveyed baccalaureate programs reported a 7.6% enrollment increase in 2025. The bottleneck is not demand from students: ADN programs in the NLN’s 2023 survey turned away 19% of applications that met admission criteria, and California’s prelicensure programs left 69.6% of qualified applications unenrolled in 2024-25. Meanwhile, HRSA projects an 8% registered nurse shortage in 2028. Because most ADN seats sit in community colleges, this roundup pairs with our community college transfer statistics. We aggregated data from NCSBN, the National League for Nursing, AACN, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, HRSA, the California Board of Registered Nursing, the Texas Center for Nursing Workforce Studies, AACC, and NCES.
TL;DR
- 89,549 associate degree graduates took the NCLEX-RN for the first time in 2025, 46.4% of all first-time US candidates (NCSBN, 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics).
- ADN first-time NCLEX-RN volume rose 7.3% from 2023 to 2025, versus 1.0% for BSN candidates (NCSBN, 2023 and 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics).
- ADN first-time pass rate: 86.1% in 2025 vs 87.6% for BSN graduates (NCSBN, 2025).
- California ADN graduates passed at 91.7% in 2024-25, above BSN graduates at 88.2% (California BRN, Annual School Report 2024-2025).
- 19% of ADN applications were qualified but not accepted (NLN Annual Survey of Schools of Nursing 2023).
- 69.6% of qualified prelicensure applications in California were not enrolled in 2024-25 (California BRN, 2024-2025).
- 92,672 qualified applications were turned away from baccalaureate and graduate nursing programs in 2025 (AACN, 2025-2026 Enrollment and Graduations).
- ADN programs held 23.3% of 838 reported nursing faculty vacancies (NLN Annual Survey 2023).
- Community colleges enroll 30% of US undergraduates (AACC Fast Facts 2026).
- HRSA projects an 8% RN shortage in 2028 and 24% in nonmetro areas (HRSA Nursing Workforce Projections, December 2025).
- 73% of RNs now hold a baccalaureate or higher, the highest NCSBN has recorded (NCSBN 2024 National Nursing Workforce Study).
- RN median annual wage: 97,550 dollars in 2025 (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook).
1. The Pipeline: ADN Graduates Are Nearly Half of New US Nurses
Two decades of policy pressure toward the bachelor’s degree have not shrunk the associate degree route. Associate degree graduates made up 46.4% of first-time, US-educated NCLEX-RN candidates in 2025 (89,549 of 192,916), up from 45.3% in 2024 (84,580 of 186,760) and 44.8% in 2023 (83,430 of 186,374), according to Table 8 of the NCSBN 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics. The shares are our arithmetic from NCSBN’s candidate counts.
The growth gap is the more telling number. ADN candidate volume grew by 6,119 between 2023 and 2025 (7.3%), while baccalaureate candidates grew by 958 (1.0%), from 99,300 to 100,258. When the country needed more nurses quickly, the two-year programs, mostly in community colleges, were where the added licensure candidates came from. Hospital diploma programs, the third route, remain a sliver at 2,671 candidates. Nursing is one of several two-year career pathways growing at once, as our trade school enrollment statistics show.
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| First-time US-educated NCLEX-RN candidates, 2025 | 192,916 | NCSBN, 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics |
| Associate degree candidates, 2025 | 89,549 (46.4% of total) | NCSBN, 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics |
| Associate degree candidates, 2024 / 2023 | 84,580 / 83,430 | NCSBN, 2024 and 2023 NCLEX Examination Statistics |
| Baccalaureate candidates, 2025 / 2023 | 100,258 / 99,300 | NCSBN, 2025 and 2023 NCLEX Examination Statistics |
| Diploma candidates, 2025 | 2,671 | NCSBN, 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics |
| All NCLEX-RN candidates for US licensure, 2025 | 328,443 | NCSBN, 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics |
| Associate’s degrees in health professions, 2021-22 | 177,413 of 1,008,285 total associate’s degrees | NCES, Digest of Education Statistics Table 321.10 |
Context note: NCSBN’s degree-type table also includes a small ‘special program codes’ category (438 candidates in 2025), which is why the three degree rows do not sum exactly to the total. The NCES health professions figure covers all allied health associate’s degrees, not only nursing, and is the most recent available data in that table (NCES Digest Table 321.10); it fell from 213,868 in 2011-12.
2. Licensure Outcomes: NCLEX Pass Rates by Degree Type
The argument that ADN graduates are less prepared rarely survives contact with licensure data. In 2025, 86.1% of first-time ADN candidates passed the NCLEX-RN, against 87.6% of BSN candidates, a gap of 1.5 points (NCSBN 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics, PDF). The gap was 1.3 points in 2024 (90.6% vs 91.9%) and 2.4 points in 2023 (87.8% vs 90.2%), according to the NCSBN 2024 NCLEX Examination Statistics and the 2023 edition.
The 2025 decline hit every degree type at once: ADN fell 4.5 points and BSN 4.3 points. NCSBN reports that the 0.00 logit passing standard was retained, so the cut score did not move. A system-wide drop of that size points to cohort or exam-level factors rather than a weakness specific to associate degree programs, and it is the figure to watch when 2026 results arrive.
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| ADN first-time pass rate, 2025 | 86.1% (77,061 of 89,549) | NCSBN, 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics |
| BSN first-time pass rate, 2025 | 87.6% (87,814 of 100,258) | NCSBN, 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics |
| Diploma first-time pass rate, 2025 | 83.3% | NCSBN, 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics |
| All first-time US-educated, 2025 / 2024 | 86.7% / 91.2% | NCSBN, 2025 and 2024 NCLEX Examination Statistics |
| ADN vs BSN pass rate, 2024 | 90.6% vs 91.9% | NCSBN, 2024 NCLEX Examination Statistics |
| ADN vs BSN pass rate, 2023 | 87.8% vs 90.2% | NCSBN, 2023 NCLEX Examination Statistics |
| US-educated repeat candidates, 2025 | 52.7% pass (42,513 candidates) | NCSBN, 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics |
| Internationally educated first-time candidates, 2025 | 47.3% pass (52,827 candidates) | NCSBN, 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics |
Context note: the practical nurse route that often feeds LVN-to-ADN bridge programs posted an 86.6% first-time US pass rate on the NCLEX-PN in 2025, across 54,818 candidates (NCSBN, 2025).
3. The Capacity Crunch: Qualified Applicants Turned Away
ADN programs do not have a demand problem; they have a seat problem. In the NLN Annual Survey of Schools of Nursing 2023, ADN programs received 72,405 applications. Only 36% were qualified and accepted, while 19% were qualified but not accepted, the highest qualified-rejection share among prelicensure RN routes (BSN 15%, diploma 12%) (NLN, Disposition of Applications by Nursing Program Type 2023). The NLN executive summary notes that the ADN figure was down 4 percent from 2022.
The four-year sector is constrained by the same inputs. AACN counts 92,672 qualified applications turned away from baccalaureate and graduate programs in 2025, citing insufficient faculty, clinical sites, classroom space, preceptors and budgets (AACN, Nursing Shortage Fact Sheet). Faculty is the recurring constraint: ADN programs held 23.3% of 838 faculty vacancies reported to the NLN, and AACN’s member schools reported 1,588 full-time vacancies, a 7.2% vacancy rate (AACN, Nursing Faculty Shortage Fact Sheet). The same staffing math shows up in our teacher shortage statistics.
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Applications to ADN programs | 72,405 | NLN Annual Survey of Schools of Nursing 2023 |
| ADN applications qualified and accepted / qualified not accepted / not qualified | 36% / 19% / 45% | NLN Annual Survey 2023 |
| BSN applications qualified but not accepted | 15% (of 142,502) | NLN Annual Survey 2023 |
| Qualified applications turned away, baccalaureate and graduate programs | 92,672 (2025) | AACN, 2025-2026 Enrollment and Graduations |
| Share of nursing faculty vacancies in ADN programs | 23.3% of 838 positions | NLN Annual Survey 2023 |
| Full-time faculty vacancies in AACN schools / vacancy rate | 1,588 / 7.2% (2025) | AACN, Special Survey on Vacant Faculty Positions 2025 |
| Nursing faculty at retirement age (65+) | 34.2% in 2024, up from 16.9% in 2017 | Journal of Nursing Regulation, April 2026, via AACN |
Context note: NLN figures are for academic year 2022-23 and count applications, not unique applicants, since students often apply to several programs. AACN data cover baccalaureate and graduate programs only, so they exclude community college ADN programs entirely. The NLN has not published a newer national ADN admissions breakdown on its site (most recent available data: NLN, 2023).
4. Who Enrolls: ADN Students and the Community College Context
The ADN classroom looks different from the BSN classroom. Just 38.5% of ADN enrollees were in the NLN’s youngest age band, compared with 77.4% of BSN enrollees, and 36.6% of ADN students were 31 or older (24.8% + 9.3% + 2.2% + 0.3% across the four oldest bands) (NLN, Proportion of Student Enrollment by Age and Program Type 2023). For many second-career adults and licensed practical nurses, the associate degree is the only route that fits around work and family, which is why the LVN-to-ADN bridge matters: in Texas, 65.9% of LVN-to-ADN graduates were 31 or older.
The institutions behind those seats serve the same population. Community colleges enroll 6.5 million credit students, 30% of all US undergraduates, and 32% of their students are the first in their family to attend college (AACC Fast Facts 2026). That diversity is reaching nursing: underrepresented students rose from 41.5% to 48.7% of prelicensure RN enrollment between 2022 and 2023 (NLN). Students weighing cost against a four-year route will find related numbers in our student loan debt statistics.
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| ADN vs BSN enrollees in youngest age band | 38.5% vs 77.4% | NLN Annual Survey 2023 |
| ADN enrollees age 31 or older | 36.6% | NLN Annual Survey 2023 (sum of published bands) |
| Underrepresented students in prelicensure RN programs | 48.7% (2023), up from 41.5% (2022) | NLN Annual Survey 2023 Executive Summary |
| Men in prelicensure RN enrollment | 14.2% (2023), up from 13.3% | NLN Annual Survey 2023 Executive Summary |
| Texas LVN-to-ADN graduates age 31+ | 65.9% | Texas Center for Nursing Workforce Studies, 2025 |
| Community colleges / credit students | 1,015 / 6.5 million (2024-25) | AACC Fast Facts 2026 |
| Community college share of US undergraduates / first-generation share | 30% / 32% | AACC Fast Facts 2026 |
Context note: the NLN age table’s youngest band is labelled ‘under 25’ in the document we read; treat the band edges as approximate. AACC figures describe all community college students, not nursing students specifically.
5. State Deep Dive: California and Texas
The two largest state systems show the ADN route expanding in absolute terms while losing share to BSN growth. California’s ADN programs enrolled 8,421 new students in 2024-25, up 23.9% from 6,794 in 2015-16, and produced 6,659 graduates, 40.6% of all prelicensure completions (California Board of Registered Nursing, Annual School Report 2024-2025). ADN programs grew from 89 to 94 over the decade, while BSN programs grew from 38 to 48; 84.0% of ADN programs are public. California ADN attrition fell from 14.3% to 8.6%, and their first-time NCLEX pass rate of 91.7% beat BSN programs’ 88.2%.
Texas tells a sharper story. New ADN enrollment rose 6.9% to 8,651 in academic year 2024-25, but total ADN enrollment slipped 1.1% to 13,095, while BSN total enrollment jumped 13.6% to 24,477 (Texas Center for Nursing Workforce Studies, 2025 Update on Student Admission, Enrollment and Graduation Trends). Statewide, 26.4% of qualified applications (9,838) were not offered admission, and programs ranked lack of clinical space first and lack of qualified faculty second as the reasons.
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| California ADN / BSN / ELM programs | 94 / 48 / 14 (2024-25) | California BRN, Annual School Report 2024-2025 |
| California ADN new enrollments | 8,421 (2024-25) vs 6,794 (2015-16) | California BRN, 2024-2025 |
| California ADN completions | 6,659 (40.6% of 16,421) | California BRN, 2024-2025 |
| California ADN vs BSN first-time NCLEX pass rate | 91.7% vs 88.2% (2024-25) | California BRN, 2024-2025 |
| California ADN attrition | 8.6% (14.3% in 2015-16) | California BRN, 2024-2025 |
| Texas ADN programs / qualified applications | 68 / 14,909 (up 3.8%) | Texas CNWS, 2025 |
| Texas ADN vs BSN total enrollment change | -1.1% vs +13.6% | Texas CNWS, 2025 |
| Texas qualified applications not offered admission | 9,838 (26.4%, all program types) | Texas CNWS, 2025 |
Context note: California ADN pass rates swing year to year (86.0% in 2015-16, 95.6% in 2023-24, 91.7% in 2024-25), and California data use academic years while NCSBN uses calendar years. Texas ADN programs have a mean curriculum length of 21.6 months and a median of 790 clinical contact hours, versus 23.6 months and 900 hours for BSN programs (Texas CNWS, 2025 Program Characteristics).
6. Demand and the BSN Push: Jobs, Shortages and Academic Progression
ADN graduates enter a labor market that needs them and a profession that keeps raising the credential bar. BLS counts 3,465,400 RN jobs in 2025 with a median wage of 97,550 dollars and projects 6% growth from 2025 to 2035, or 180,800 openings a year (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, Registered Nurses). HRSA projects an 8% RN shortage in 2028, and the gap is geographic: 24% in nonmetro areas against 5% in metro areas (HRSA, Nurse Workforce Projections 2023-2038). The shortage is deepest outside metro areas, which is where the distance to a four-year campus is usually greatest.
At the same time, the workforce is credentialing up. 73% of RNs now hold a baccalaureate or higher as their highest nursing degree, the highest level NCSBN has ever documented, and the share first prepared with a BSN rose from 39% to 46% between 2015 and 2024 (NCSBN, 2024 National Nursing Workforce Study). The bridge between the two is weakening in at least one large state: California ADN programs in ADN-to-BSN partnerships fell from 80.9% to 67.0% in a year. Retention is the other pressure, a theme in our shift work health statistics.
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| RN jobs / median annual wage | 3,465,400 / 97,550 dollars (2025) | BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook |
| RN employment growth / annual openings | 6% / 180,800 (2025-2035) | BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook |
| Projected RN shortage, 2028 | 8% (3,034,360 FTE supply vs 3,301,690 FTE demand) | HRSA Nurse Workforce Projections, December 2025 |
| Projected RN shortage, nonmetro vs metro | 24% vs 5% (2028); 11% vs 2% (2038) | HRSA Nurse Workforce Projections, December 2025 |
| RNs with baccalaureate or higher | 73% (2024) | NCSBN 2024 National Nursing Workforce Study |
| RNs first prepared with a BSN | 46% (2024), 39% (2015) | NCSBN 2024 National Nursing Workforce Study |
| California ADN programs in ADN-to-BSN partnerships | 67.0% (2024-25), 80.9% (2023-24) | California BRN, 2024-2025 |
| RNs intending to leave within 5 years | 40% | NCSBN 2024 National Nursing Workforce Study |
Context note: HRSA projects California will have the largest 2038 RN shortage of any state, 22% or 84,750 FTEs, which frames that state’s ADN expansion. NCSBN also reports a median RN age of 50 in 2024, up from 46 in 2022, and 138,000 nurses leaving the workforce since 2022.
Summary: Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) Enrollment by the Numbers
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| ADN first-time NCLEX-RN candidates | 89,549 (2025) | NCSBN, 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics |
| ADN share of first-time US candidates | 46.4% (2025), 44.8% (2023) | NCSBN, 2025 and 2023 |
| ADN candidate growth, 2023 to 2025 | +7.3% vs +1.0% for BSN | NCSBN, 2023 and 2025 |
| ADN vs BSN first-time pass rate | 86.1% vs 87.6% (2025) | NCSBN, 2025 |
| All first-time US pass rate | 86.7% (2025), 91.2% (2024) | NCSBN, 2025 and 2024 |
| ADN applications qualified but not accepted | 19% of 72,405 | NLN Annual Survey 2023 |
| Qualified applications turned away, BSN and graduate | 92,672 (2025) | AACN, 2025-2026 Enrollment and Graduations |
| Entry-level baccalaureate enrollment change | +7.6% (2025) | AACN, 2025 |
| ADN share of faculty vacancies | 23.3% of 838 | NLN Annual Survey 2023 |
| ADN enrollees in youngest age band | 38.5% vs 77.4% BSN | NLN Annual Survey 2023 |
| Community college share of undergraduates | 30% | AACC Fast Facts 2026 |
| California ADN new enrollments | 8,421 (2024-25) | California BRN, 2024-2025 |
| California ADN vs BSN pass rate | 91.7% vs 88.2% | California BRN, 2024-2025 |
| California qualified applications not enrolled | 69.6% | California BRN, 2024-2025 |
| Texas qualified applications not offered admission | 26.4% | Texas CNWS, 2025 |
| RN annual openings | 180,800 (2025-2035) | BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook |
| Projected RN shortage 2028 | 8%, 24% nonmetro | HRSA, December 2025 |
| RNs with baccalaureate or higher | 73% (2024) | NCSBN 2024 National Nursing Workforce Study |
Methodology and Sources
Every figure above was read during research for this article in the primary document or the publisher’s own landing page. Percentage shares and growth rates marked as derived were calculated from published counts, with the math shown in the text. National ADN enrollment counts are not published in a single annual government series, so we used NCLEX first-time candidate counts as the national pipeline measure and state board data for enrollment.
- NCSBN: 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics (PDF), 2024 NCLEX Examination Statistics, 2023 NCLEX Examination Statistics (PDF), 2024 National Nursing Workforce Study, RN highlights, 2024 Workforce Survey infographic
- National League for Nursing: NLN Annual Survey of Schools of Nursing 2023, Executive Summary (PDF), Disposition of Applications by Program Type, Enrollment by Age and Program Type
- AACN: Nursing Shortage Fact Sheet, Nursing Faculty Shortage Fact Sheet, Nursing Fact Sheet
- Bureau of Labor Statistics: Occupational Outlook Handbook, Registered Nurses
- HRSA: Projecting Health Workforce Supply and Demand, Nurse Workforce Projections fact sheet, December 2025 (PDF)
- California Board of Registered Nursing: Pre-Licensure Nursing Program Annual School Report 2024-2025 (PDF)
- Texas Center for Nursing Workforce Studies (Texas DSHS): 2025 Update on Student Admission, Enrollment and Graduation Trends, 2025 Program Characteristics, 2025 Student Demographics
- American Association of Community Colleges: Fast Facts 2026 (PDF)
- NCES: Digest of Education Statistics, Table 321.10
- Data watch: BLS figures conflict across editions. The current Occupational Outlook Handbook projects 6% RN growth and 180,800 annual openings for 2025-2035, while AACN’s fact sheets still cite the prior 2024-2034 projection (5% growth, 189,100 openings); we use the BLS page directly. HRSA’s 8% shortage for 2028 matches AACN’s 267,330 FTE deficit (3,301,690 minus 3,034,360), but HRSA’s 2038 shortage is only 3% (108,960 FTEs). The NLN national ADN admissions data are for academic year 2022-23 (most recent available data: NLN Annual Survey 2023), and several NLN PDFs were read through a text-extraction reader because they were not machine-readable directly; AACC’s research page and HRSA’s landing page blocked direct access, and the NCSBN, California BRN and Texas CNWS PDFs were image or compressed files, so we read the same documents through that reader. The OADN annual ADN program survey (Teaching and Learning in Nursing, 2026) was paywalled and is not cited. NCSBN’s three degree rows exclude a ‘special program codes’ category, and the 2025 pass-rate drop occurred with the passing standard unchanged. The NCES health professions count (2021-22) is older than three years and covers all allied health fields. California’s 69.6% not-enrolled figure covers all prelicensure program types and includes applicants who were admitted but did not enroll.
Last updated: October 3, 2026. We update this roundup quarterly, and the next refresh is expected when NCSBN publishes its 2026 NCLEX Examination Statistics and the NLN releases its next Annual Survey of Schools of Nursing.