At the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action, we really like data, and we couldn’t let this number slip by without highlighting it for you.

For the first time, the number of nurses graduating with a bachelor of science in nursing (BSN), including RN-to-BSN graduates, is higher than the number of nurses graduating with an entry-level associate’s degree (ADN). Historically, nurses have always gotten ADNs in higher numbers, but that changed in 2012, according to this report, “The Rapid Growth of Graduates from Associate, Baccalaureate, and Graduate Programs in Nursing,” by Peter I. Buerhaus, David I. Auerbach and Douglas O. Staiger.

What’s more, the total number of graduates from BSN and ADN programs more than doubled from roughly 77,000 in 2002 to 184,000 in 2012, according to the report.

The Campaign is working to implement the Institute of Medicine (IOM) recommendation that 80 percent of all nurses graduate with a BSN by 2020.

Read the full report.