From what I have read it is a somewhat regional thing. Northeast schools generally have more direct admit programs vs southern colleges for example.
I personally would not let my D apply to any 2+2 programs that required an application into the nursing program where you are competing against other students. She applied to either direct admit or what I’ll call self admit, a program where you are in if you meet predetermined criteria.
We also noticed most direct admit start nursing classes much earlier, some first semester as others have pointed out. One other point that we have seen is that it is not your overall GPA that keeps you in the program, but you must meet minimum grades in most classes, from Anatomy to Chemistry to Psychology to each Nursing class. It is very regimented!