The history of Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) and Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degrees is a long and complicated one. The first nursing school in the United States was founded in 1873, and it offered a diploma in nursing. In 1898, the first baccalaureate degree in nursing was offered at the University of Minnesota. However, it was not until after World War II that the ADN and BSN degrees became more common. In the early 1950s, the Veterans Administration began to fund nursing education, and this led to an increase in the number of schools offering nursing degrees. The ADN degree became more popular in the 1960s and 1970s, and by the 1980s it had become the most common nursing degree. The BSN degree began to gain popularity in the 1990s, and it is now the most common advanced nursing degree.
There is no clear-cut answer as to which degree is better, as it depends on the individual's specific goals and needs. However, most people agree that the Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) provides a more focused education, while the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) offers more opportunities for specialization and advancement.