How Many Attempts Are Allowed in NATA Exam?
National Aptitude Test in Architecture 2026 ( NATA )
NATA is conducted in multiple sessions from March 2026 to August 2026. Candidates can check this page to know How Many Attempts Are Allowed in NATA Exam? Read more to know all about NATA 2026.
How Many Attempts Are Allowed in NATA Exam?
How Many Times Can Candidates Appear for NATA? NATA is one of the most important entrance exams for students seeking admission to BArch programmes in India. The biggest advantage of NATA 2026 exam is that it is conducted in multiple sessions. This allows the students multiple opportunities within the same academic year to improve their performance.
Since the exam is conducted many times in a year, the students would want to know how many attempts are permitted in a year. Check this article to know the number of times a candidate can attempt NATA 2026.
- NATA 2026 Maximum Number of Attempts Allowed
- NATA Score Considered for Admission
- Why Multiple NATA Attempts Are Beneficial
- Is it Necessary To Appear for All Three NATA Attempts?
- Things to Consider Before Retaking the NATA Exam
- Validity of NATA Score
NATA 2026 Maximum Number of Attempts Allowed
NATA 2026 will be conducted on every Friday and Saturday from March 2026 to August 2026. Additional exams will be conducted in September 2026. Candidates can appear upto three times in one academic year. This means that during a single academic year, candidates can take the exam on three different NATA exam dates.
Since the exam is conducted on multiple weekends, over several months, candidates gets lot of time to prepare and appear for the exam.
NATA score is valid for two academic years. With their obtained scores, candidates will only be able to apply for colleges in that admission year and the following year. The score will be invalid if candidates use it for admissions after two years. If the candidates wish to apply for admissions after two years, then they will be required to retake the entrance examination. Requests for extension of the score validity will not be entertained by the authorities. Therefore, the candidates are advised to immediately apply for admissions after they receive their scores.
Candidates will be checked on various factors during NATA 2026. Authorities will prepare NATA 2026 question paper after considering various assessement factors - Inductive Reasoning (ability to analyze data and patterns), Diagrammatic Reasoning (ability to analyze drawings and use logical reasoning), Numerical Reasoning (ability to solve simple numerical problems), Verbal Reasoning (verbal logic), Situational Judgment (problem-solving abilities), Abstract Reasoning (general knowledge and their ability to apply it in situations) and Logical Reasoning (ability to recognise patterns, relationships, sequences and more).
NATA Score Considered for Admission
The main advantage of appearing for the exam multiple times is that only the highest score will be considered for admission. Check details below.
- Colleges will consider the best score of the 3 attempts for admission.
- There is no penalty for retaking the exam.
- Students can attempt the exam again to improve their scores.
- Low score in the previous attempt will not negatively affect admission.
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Why Multiple NATA Attempts Are Beneficial
The option to appear up to three times offers several advantages.
Opportunity To Improve Performance
NATA exam assess the creativity, spatial ability and drawing skills. These are the areas that can improve with practice. Multiple attempts will help the candidates to refine their skills and improve performance.
Reduce Exam Pressure
Knowing that the candidates will get multiple chances reduces the anxiety and pressure to appear for the exam. This helps the candidates to take the exam without any stress.
Strategic Preparation
Students can consider the first attempt as a trial to understand the NATA exam pattern, difficulty level, and time management requirements. They can use it for NATA preparation for the next attempt.
Flexibility To Study for Boards
Since the NATA exam is conducted over an extended time period, students can pick a date that does not clash with their Class 12 board exam schedule.
Candidates will be eligible to apply and attempt one or more sessions of NATA. In case a candidate appears for 2 tests, the best of the 2 scores shall be the valid score and in the case of more than 2 attempts, the valid score shall be the average of the best scores. All candidates will be required to mandatory qualify at least one session of NATA to be eligible for B.Arch admissions into the respective Architecture colleges and institutes. Candidates are advised to attempt as many sessions as they can to have a higher chance of securing good scores.
For admissions into the preferred BArch institutes, the candidates should meet the basic eligibility criteria. If the candidates do not meet the basic eligibiity criteria for BArch admissions based on NATA scores, then their chances of admission will be minimal.
- The candidates should have passed 10+2th standard qualifying examination with minimum required marks.
- Should be minimum 17 years old as of July 13 of the admission year.
- The candidates should have secured a valid NATA 2023 score i.e., minimum 70 marks out of 200.
There is no common counselling for NATA qualified candidates. After the results are declared, the candidates will be able to individually apply to the institute of their preference. The details regarding the counselling process will be announced individually by the institutes. As per the schedule of their preferred institute, the candidates will have to apply for admission and submit their details. NATA scores will be considered for allotment of seats.
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Is it Necessary To Appear for All Three NATA Attempts?
Candidates can stop after the first or second attempt. Taking all three attempts of NATA 2026 is optional. However, it is recommended that candidates take all three attempts to improve scores.
Things to Consider Before Retaking the NATA Exam
Candidates must consider these points before they appear again for the exam.
- If there is enough time given to improve the weak areas.
- Has the performance in the drawing and aptitude sections improved
- Cutoff Trends of Preferred Colleges
- Application fees for additional attempts.
- Physical and Mental Readiness
Explore more Architecture & Planning exams with upcoming dates
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Validity of NATA Score
The NATA score will be valid for only the academic year in which the exam is taken. Candidates who want to apply in a later year must appear again.
Dhanya writes content on Engineering and Architecture exams. She has completed MSc Physics. She has 8+ years of work experience in the education industry. She likes painting and travelling.
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Student Forum
Anything you would want to ask experts?Answered 6 days ago
GITAM School of Architecture Hyderabad accepts NATA scores for admission to BArch course. Aspirants with NATA score also need to meet the eligibility criteria for admission. The school also accepts scores in JEE Main paper-2 or GITAM GAT.
N
Guide-Level 15
Answered a week ago
No, NATA application form cannot be filled offline. NATA application form can be filled only on official website, nata.in. Candidates must pay application fee and fill all the details on application form online and submit it.
A
Contributor-Level 6
Answered a week ago
Knowing NATA exam pattern is important for exam preparation. Candidates will know exact sections included in the question paper and their weightage. If the candidates are familiar with topics in the syllabus, they need not waste time on irrelevant topics.
A
Contributor-Level 6
Answered a week ago
The NATA 2026 application form will be available soon. As per the last year dates, the NATA application form will be available from February. Application form is released on the official website.
M
Contributor-Level 7
Answered 3 weeks ago
Indus University NATA cutoff 2024 was released for admission to the BArch course for various categories under both the All India and Home State quota. For the General HS quota, the last round cutoff was 11431. On the other hand, for the General AI quota, the cutoff was 21182 in the last round.
To kno
N
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 3 weeks ago
VNSGU Surat accepts the NATA cutoff results for admission to the BArch course. The cutoff was released in the form of opening and closing ranks for various categories under both the All India and Home State quotas.
According to the VNSGU Surat NATA cutoff 2024, the last round cutoff for the General
N
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 3 weeks ago
Sasi Creative Colleges accepts NATA scores for admission to BArch programme. Candidates must also pass Class 12 with at least 50% aggregate to apply for BArch. The seats are allotted to candidates based on their NATA scores via TNEA Counselling. Candidates can also get admission in BArch programme b
N
Guide-Level 15
Answered a month ago
If you want to get admission into M.Arch colleges in India than you can consider the following exams other than NATA:
- MAH MArch CET
- GATE (Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering),
- CEED (Common Entrance Exam for Design)
- Karnataka PGCET
- CEETA
- KCET
- CUET-PG
Some colleges also require their own aptitude tests and
S
Contributor-Level 7
Answered a month ago
The HNGU NATA Cutoff 2024 was released for admission to the BArch course for both the AI and HS quota. As per the HNGU Cutoff 2024 for the General AI category, the cutoff in the last round was 31049.
On the other hand for the General HS category, the last round cutoff was 11429 for the same course. C
N
Contributor-Level 10
Answered a month ago
No, you can't get admission in Dev Bhoomi School of Architecture, Planning and Design BArch course without NATA. The university accepts students for the other courses on a merit basis. But, if you want to enrol in the BArch course, NATA is mandatory.
S
Contributor-Level 10
Minimum qualifying marks in NATA change slightly every year. Approximate marks required to clear NATA are provided below.
Qualifying Marks: Candidates must score minimum of 70 out of 200 marks in NATA exam to qualify, regardless of category. This is the standard passing mark for each attempt of exam.
In addition, there will be a separate minimum score for each section.