Fashion and design is the field of study pursued by students with creative acumen to become designers, fashion designers and/or fashion technologists. There are a large variety of renowned fashion and design colleges in India, some of which include the National Institutes of Design, National Institutes of Fashion Technology, design departments at IITs, the Indian Institute of Art and Design (IIAD Delhi) and Symbiosis Institute of Design among several others. Here are some of the top fashion and design entrance exams in India candidates can appear for:
The Undergraduate Common Entrance Examination for Design (UCEED)
Conducted by IIT Bombay to shortlist candidates into design programmes (B.Des.) in 19 participating colleges including IIT Bombay, Delhi, Guwahati, Hyderabad and IIITDM Jabalpur, the UCEED exam is conducted on a national level annually at 24 cities across the country.
The entrance exam is conducted in online mode and the duration of the exam is three hours. The application process is also in the online mode. The application process for 2022 admission ended on October 17, 2021, and candidates are allowed to submit the application with late fee of Rs. 500/- till October 22, 2021.
Website: http://www.uceed.iitb.ac.in/2022/
Eligibility: Candidates applying for UCEED 2022 must have been born on or after October 1, 1997 (general category). For reserved categories, candidates must have been born on or after October 1, 1992. The number of attempts is limited at twice in consecutive years. Candidates should have passed their 10+2 examinations from any stream to apply.
Exam date: January 23, 2022.
Application fees: Rs. 3500/-
Result publication date: March 10, 2022. Seat allocation rounds are held from April to June.
Exam subjects and paper pattern: Candidates are required to solve a total of 68 questions worth 300 marks within three hours. The exam is held in CBT-mode (computer-based test) and is divided into two parts:
Part A questions include topics such as language and creativity, environmental and social awareness, visualisation and spatial ability, analytical and logical reasoning, design thinking and problem-solving and observation and design sensibility. Part A carries 240 marks with three sections: numerical answer type (NAT), multiple select questions (MSQ) and Multiple choice questions (MCQ) and has to be solved in 2.5 hours.
Part B is the drawing section, where the candidate shall be required to draw scenes, people, products in proper proportion and technicalities. Part B carries 60 marks and must be completed in 30 minutes.
Contact details: IIT Bombay, Powai, Mumbai-400076, Maharashtra, India
+91 22 2576 4063
NID Design Aptitude Test (NID-DAT)
Conducted by the National Institute of Design, NID-DAT is a two-tiered national entrance exam to qualify for B.Des., M.Des. and GDPD programmes in the NIDs in India.
The entrance exam has two stages: DAT Prelims, followed by DAT Mains. NID-DAT is conducted once a year in the offline mode in a duration of three hours (for B.Des.). The application process for DAT 2022 has already begun since October 5, 2021, and the last day of application is November 30, 2021, and till December 5 with late fees.
Website: https://admissions.nid.edu/
Eligibility: Candidates applying for NID-DAT (UG) 2022 must have been born on or after July 1, 2002 (general category). For reserved categories, candidates must have been born on or after July 1, 1999, and 1997 for PwD. Candidates should have passed their 10+2 examinations from any stream to apply.
Exam date: January 02, 2022 (for NID-DAT Prelims)
NID-DAT Mains to be held in March or April.
Application fees: Rs. 3000/- (general category)
Rs. 1500/- for reserved categories
Result publication date: Results for Prelims to be announced in January or February 2022, and results for Mains to be announced in April or May 2022.
Exam subjects and paper pattern: Candidates are required to solve a 100-mark paper in three hours (for prelims as well as mains). Candidates have to solve both subjective and objective type questions in Prelims on topics such as design outline, picture analysis and graphics and pictograms; prelims carry 70% weightage and has two parts: part I comprising 22 objective questions and part II comprising four subjective questions. Candidates have to solve drawing and/or model-making questions for 100 marks, and Mains carry 30% weightage.
Contact details: National Institute of Design Paldi, Ahmedabad-380 007, Gujarat, India
+91 79 2662 9500
NIFT entrance exam
Conducted by the National Institute of Fashion Technology, the NIFT entrance is accepted by the 17 NIFTs all around the country for admission to UG and PG fashion design and technology programmes such as B.Des., B.FTech., M.F.M. etc.
The NIFT entrance is conducted once annually in the offline (pen and paper) mode. The application process for 2022 has begun in October 2021 and will go on till December-January.
Website: https://nift.ac.in/admission
Eligibility: Candidates applying for UG programmes in NIFT have to be below 23 years of age (general category). Reserved categories can get a five-year relaxation. Candidates should have passed their 10+2 examinations from any stream to apply.
Exam date: January or February 2022.
Application fees: Rs. 2000/- (general category)
Rs. 1000/- for reserved categories
Result publication date: March 2022.
Exam subjects and paper pattern: The NIFT design entrance test has three parts: the creative ability test (CAT), the general ability test (GAT) and the situation test. Candidates applying for B.FTech. only need to appear for the GAT, while B.Des. aspirants must attempt all three sections. Candidates are given two hours to solve 100 questions in the GAT; three hours for the 100-mark CAT section. The written tests evaluate the candidate’s knowledge of analytical, quantitative and communication ability, English comprehension and general knowledge and current affairs. Only after qualifying the written tests, candidates will be invited for the situation test where the model evaluation will judge the candidate’s uniqueness, creativity, space visualization etc.
Contact details: NIFT Campus, Hauz Khas, Near Gulmohar Park, New Delhi – 110 016, India
+91 1126542000
All India Entrance Examination for Design (AIEED)
Conducted by the Arch College of Design and Business, the AIEED exam is held to offer UG and PG design programmes by evaluating the aesthetic senses, design sensitivity and creativity of candidates.
AIIED is annually held in the online mode for a duration of three hours. The application process and exam for 2021 have already passed in September.
Website: https://www.aieed.com/
Eligibility: Candidates must have passed their 10+2 exams in any stream. Any candidate above the age of 16 may appear for the entrance.
Application fees: Rs. 3000/-
Exam pattern and subjects: The AIEED test has three stages; the video and portfolio general ability test (GAT), which needs to be submitted online a week before the exam date, the creative ability test (CAT) comprising 50 questions (total marks- 200) which needs to be answered within three hours and the personal interaction, also held in the online mode.
Contact details: Arch College of Design & Business, 9, Govind Marg, Malviya Nagar, Jaipur-m 302 017, Rajasthan, India
+91 94140 70678
Symbiosis Entrance Exam for Design (SEED)
Conducted by the Symbiosis Institute of Design (SID), the SEED exam is held to offer undergraduate design courses (B.Des.) at Symbiosis to applicants.
The SEED exam is held annually in the online mode for a duration of 2.5 hours. The registrations for SEED 2022 will begin in February 2022 till May/June 2022.
Website: https://www.sid.edu.in/
Eligibility: Candidates must have passed their 10+2 examinations from any stream to apply for SEED. There is no age limit.
Exam date: June 2022.
Application fees: Rs. 750/-
Result publication date: July 2022
Exam subjects and paper pattern: Candidates need to attempt a total of 150 objective-type questions in the online mode in a duration of 2.5 hours. Students will be judged on topics including basic science and mathematics concepts, visualisation, art and culture, design and environment and observation and reasoning aptitude.
Contact details: S No. 231/4A, Vimannagar, Pune – 411014, Maharashtra, India
+91 2026557210
iDAT
Conducted by the Indian Institute of Art & Design, New Delhi, the iDAT entrance exam is held to offer various bachelor degree courses in design, fashion, interior architecture and planning.
The iDAT is held in the online as well as offline mode for a duration of 2.5 hours. The 2021 application process has ended on September 17, 2021 and the exam is scheduled to be held on December 26 and 27, 2021.
Website: https://www.iiad.edu.in/admissions/
Eligibility: Candidates must have passed their 10+2 exams with any stream to apply.
Exam date: December 26 and 27, 2021
Application fees: Rs. 2000/-
Result publication date: TBA
Exam subjects and paper pattern: With total marks of 200 to be completed in 2.5 hours, the iDAT exam has two sections of 100 marks each. Section A is based on logical reasoning for which students are allotted 30 minutes, while section B is based on creative thinking, visual aptitude and problem solving for which students are allotted two hours. After giving the iDAT exam, candidates are required to appear for the studio simulation, where the personal interaction session evaluates the candidate’s innovation, creative thinking, teamwork and resolution abilities.
Contact details: B-26, Okhla Phase 1, New Delhi- 110 020, India.
+91 11 41380000
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