National Institute of Design Ahmedabad Course Admissions 2026: Eligibility, Fees & Selection Criteria

NID Ahmedabad admission is conducted on the basis of Design Aptitude Test (DAT) exams conducted by NID entrance exams for both BDes and MDes courses. The college conducts its application process in an online mode. To get admitted to NID Ahmedabad campus, candidates must meet the eligibility criteria set by the college. 

BDes and MDes are the popular courses offered by NID Ahmedabad and the institute also offers PhD courses. BDes is offered in 8 specialisations and MDes is offered in 7 specialisations. 

NID Ahmedabad cutoff to BDes and MDes courses is based on NID DAT followed by counselling. The Open rank for BDes for NID Ahmedabad cutoff 2024 offered through NID DAT is estimated to be around 47, with a cutoff score of 65.8. For MDes, candidates must have around 80 - 95.4 score in NID DAT for NID Ahmedabad admission.

The aforementioned score and cutoff are anticipated on the basis of previous year trends for Open category students for a total seat of 144. 

Admission to the BDes course is based on marks secured by the candidate in NID DAT exam. Candidates who meet the NID DAT cut-off are considered for the further admission process for BDes admission. As per the trends of the last few years, candidates are expected to have a good score of 48 to 65.8 in NID DAT for BDes. Tabulated below is the NID Dat score and opening rank for BDes at NID Ahmedabad:

NID Ahmedabad offers MDes in 7 specialisations to students which are Animation Film Design, Film & Video Communication, Graphic Design, Ceramic & Glass Design, Furniture & Interior Design, Product Design, and Textile Design. The duration of the course is for 2 years. Candidates need to clear the NID Entrance Exam. NID Ahmedabad eligibility and selection criteria for MDes course:

Selection criteria: DAT Prelims (30% weightage) + DAT Mains (70% weightage, including studio test-40% and interview-30%)

Eligibility: A pass in Bachelor's degree of a minimum of four-year duration in any stream or a full-time Diploma of four-year duration in Design, Fine Arts, Applied Arts and Architecture or three-year Bachelor's degree is required to apply for MDes course. Additionally, candidates must be born on or after July 1, 1992 (July 1, 1989 for SC/ ST).

The two-and-a-half-year Master of Design at NID Ahmedabad is offered in seven specialisations as per the official website. It includes Lifestyle Accessory Design, Textile Design, Product Design, etc.

Check below the category wise offered MDes courses:

• Communication Design is offered under three discipline: Film & Video Communication, Graphic Design, Animation Film Design
• Industrial Design is offered under three discipline: Ceramic and Glass Design, Furniture and Interior Design, Product Design
• Apparel, Lifestyle & Accessory Design offers three discipline: Textile Design

The four-year Bachelor of Design (BDes) programme is offered in four specialisations, I.e., Communication Design, Foundation Programme, Industrial Design and Textile, Apparel, Lifestyle & Accessory Design. Communication Design has four disciplines: Film And Video Communication, Exhibition Design, Animation Film Design and Graphic Design.

NID Ahmedabad BDes fees is INR 18.1 lakh. This total fee does include hostel charges. The given fee is as per an official fee structure for 2026-27. Hence, is indicative. Students need to pay the first semester fee or admission fee to confirm seats. 

There are a total of 126 seats for MDes courses offered by NID Ahemdabad. The seats are distributed specialisation-wise. The sanctioned intake is subject to revision by the authorities. It is mentioned here as per the official website/ sanctioning body. But is still subject to changes and hence, is indicative.

NID Ahmedabad has a total of 19 seats for its MDes in Textile Design course. Candidates are admitted to the programme as per sanctioned intake and performance in NID entrance test. The institute can revise its seat count in any academic session. Hence, is indicative.

NID Ahemdabad MDes fee includes an alumni fee of INR 5,000. It generally has to be paid for joining the alumni association. The fee is one-time chargeable. It is mentioned here as per the 2026-27 fee structure. Hence, is indicative.

The other charges inculded in the NID Ahmedabad MDes fees are insurance, student activity fund, and film club. Total amount of other charges is INR 2,800. This fee has to be paid in first and third semester. The amount to be paid in each semester is INR 1,400. This fee is as per official sources, but can still be revised. Hence, is indicative.

The NID Counselling 2026 will commence after the declaration of the NID DAT Mains 2026 Result of B.Des and M.Des.

Candidates seeking admission to BDes at UID Ahmedabad need to take the UID Design Aptitude Test. The authorities usually conduct the entrance examination in the month of January. Schedule of the entrance examination is published on the official website of the institute. The aspirants should stay updated with important event dates to avoid missing out on an important event.

There are 147 seats available for MDes programme at NID Ahmedabad. The seats are reserved specialisation-wise. which are tabulated below:

The NIFT and NID DAT are different entrance exams. Also, while the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) released an official syllabus for the NIFT entrance exam, the National Institute of Design (NID) doesn’t release any official syllabus.

So, the only option for the NID aspirant is to consult previous years’ papers and sample test papers to get an idea regarding the types of questions that may be asked in the NID DAT 2024 exam.

And no, the NIFT 2024 syllabus cannot be relied on to prepare for the NID DAT exam. The candidate may refer to the NIFT syllabus only to further their knowledge.