NID (National Institute of Design) is a school of design located in Ahmedabad with campuses in Gandhinagar and Bengaluru. There are other NIDs too located in Kurukshetra (Haryana), Vijayawada (Andhra Pradesh) and Jorhat (Assam). Under the Government of India, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, and the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT); the institute functions as an autonomous body.

NID has been accorded as “Institutes of National Importance" by Act of Parliament, under the National Institute of Design Act, 2014. It is also recognised by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research under the government of India, Ministry of Science and Technology, as a scientific and industrial design research organisation.

NID Design Aptitude Examination is a process by which applicants get selected for UG, and PG design courses are provided at the renowned National Institute Design (NID) campuses. Candidates must pass two NID entry exams to be qualified for entry to the architecture courses available at their campuses. Earlier, NID gave access to its five campuses via the NID entrance test. Even so, from 2019 onwards, two more NID campuses, i.e., NID Bhopal and NID Jorhat, were put on the list in which entry to the GDPD course was given on the merit of the NID admission exam.

Initially, NID provided Bachelor of Design (BDes), Graduate Diploma Program in Design (GDPD), and Master in Design (MDes) courses at its colleges. That being said, from 2020 onwards, the existing NID campuses that provided GDPD courses to students have started providing BDes degree programs depending on their success in the NID Entry Test.

NID DAT Eligibility Criteria

Applicants wishing to apply for a BDes or a GDPD course at NID fulfil the eligibility requirements once they have passed or participated for their secondary education (10 + 2) qualifying test from any stream (Science, Arts, Commerce, etc.) from any recognised board such as CBSE, IB, ICSE, or their equal may apply for an examination.

B.Des:

• Phase 1: Is a 3-hour test which is of 100 marks and the questions consists of both visual and textual. The test is conducted to measure the candidate’s finesse for Design Problem Solving, Mental ability, Observation and Perception, Communication Skills, Visual Sense, and Environmental Awareness.
• Phase 2: This phase comprises of a Studio Test, which is divided into three further parts: Doodling, 3D modeling and an observation test which is followed by a Personal Interview and Portfolio Presentation.

M.Des:

• Phase 1: This is too a 3-hour test which is of 100 marks and consists of two parts. Part A, is of 40 marks which is a Common Foundation and Part B, is of 60 marks which is a Specialization Paper.
• Phase 2: This phase like the 2nd phase for the B.Des test, consists of a studio test, personal interview and portfolio presentation.