NID Admissions 2026: Colleges Accepting NID Scores for BDes & MDes Courses

The National Institute of Design conducts the NID DAT exam to offer admission to B.Des and M.Des courses offered by participating colleges. But do you know about other colleges that accept NID DAT scores? If you don't, this article is for you. 

The National Institute of Design (NID) conducts the NID Design Aptitude Test. The entrance exam is conducted every year to shortlist candidates for admission to the various design courses offered by NID DAT participating colleges, including the B.Des courses and the M.Des course.

The National Institute of Design is expected to conduct the NID DAT 2026 on December 21, 2025 for B.Des and M.Des. NID DAT 2026 Admit card are available for download. 

Latest Update: 

• NID DAT 2026 LIVE Updates: Reporting/Bell Timing, Exam Day Guidelines, Analysis, Paper Difficulty, Student Review
• NID DAT 2026 Exam Tomorrow: Reporting Time and Things to Carry at Exam Centre

The NID offers the BDes program at the five NID campuses. Meanwhile, the M.Des program is available at three NID institutes. Currently, there are 425 seats for the B.Des program, while there are 347 seats available for the M.Des program. Admission to the B.Des and M.Des programs will be based on NID DAT 2026 merit ranks. 

NID Admission Process 2026

The NIDs offer B.Des and M.Des courses. Admission to these courses is conducted through the NID Entrance Test (DAT). The DAT has two parts:

1. DAT Prelims
2. DAT Mains

The NID DAT 2026 Final result will be prepared by giving weightage to DAT Prelims and DAT Mains. The merit rank will be used to shortlist candidates for NID DAT 2026 counselling and seat allotment.

As part of the NID counselling process, eligible candidates must fill in their academic choices (campus + specialization). The NID DAT 2026 seat allotment will be based on:

1. Merit rank of the candidate in the NID DAT 2026 exam
2. Choices opted
3. Available seats

NID DAT 2026 Counselling and Seat Allotment

The National Institute of Design (NID) will conduct the counseling-cum-seat allotment process for NID DAT 2026 in May 2026. B.Des candidates need to select campuses for NID counseling; however, M.Des candidates aren't required to select campuses. The seat allotment for the B.Des program will be declared on May 27, 2026. Allotment for the M.Des program will be announced on May 6, 2026. Candidates who are allotted seats will have to pay the seat-acceptance fee and confirm their seats. The Provisional Offer Letter for the B.Des program will be released on June 10; the letter for the M.Des program can be downloaded from May 20 (onward).

NID Admission 2026 - Document Checklist

The candidate will need the following documents during the NID Admission 2026

• Mark Sheet of Class 10
• Mark Sheet of Class 12
• Marksheet of Graduation (in case of M.Des Admission)
• Graduation Mark Sheet and Certificates
• Birth Certificate
• Category Certificate (if applicable)
• PwD Certificate (if applicable)
• Passport (for overseas candidates)
• A Bonafide Certificate from the Principal of the college last attended (to be submitted by candidates awaiting their results)

Note that the candidate will be considered for admission only upon verification of the above documents.

NID DAT Admission Schedule 2026

The expected dates for NID DAT Admission 2026 are:

NID DAT Eligibility Criteria 2026

Candidates seeking admission to the B.Des and M.Des programs at the NIDs must meet the following eligibility criteria.

NID DAT 2026 Participating Institute - Seat Intake for B.Des program

The B.Des program is offered at five institutes. Seat allotment will be merit-based. 

NID DAT 2026 - Institute-wise Reservation of seats for B.Des 

The expected NID DAT 2026 institute-wise reservation for B.Des is:

Bachelor of Design (B.Des.) at NID Ahmedabad

The faculty-wise seat intake expected at NID participating colleges is also given below.

Faculty of Communication Design   

The expected seat intake is: 

Faculty of Industrial Design

The expected seat intake is: 

Faculty of Textile, Apparel, Lifestyle, and Accessory Design

The expected seat intake is: 

Bachelor of Design (B.Des.) at NID Andhra Pradesh, NID Haryana, NID Madhya Pradesh, NID Assam

The expected seat intake is: 

Note: 

• The number of seats reserved for Indian nationals is 125.
• Candidates selected for admission at NID Ahmedabad must attend a mandatory Design Foundation studies for 2 semesters. 

Also Read:

• What is a Good Score in NID DAT 2026

The National Institute of Design (NID) offers a two-and-a-half-year years’ Master of Design (M.Des.) program at the following campuses:

• NID Ahmedabad
• NID Bengaluru 
• NID Gandhinagar 

NID DAT 2026- Institute-wise seat intake for M.Des 

The expected seats at the NID for M.Des 2026 are:

NID DAT 2026 - M.Des programs, Program-wise Seat Intake

The National Institute of Design has five faculties:

1. The Faculty of Communication Design
2. The Faculty of Industrial Design
3. Faculty of Information Technology-Integrated Programmes
4. Faculty of Interdisciplinary Design Studies
5. Faculty of Textile, Apparel, and Lifestyle Accessory Design

The various disciplines and the institute-wise seat intake can be checked from the tables below.

Faculty of Communication Design

The expected seats at the Faculty of Communication Design are:

Faculty of Industrial Design 

The expected seats at the Faculty of Industrial Design 

Faculty of Information Technology-Integrated Programmes

The expected seats at the Faculty of Information Technology-Integrated Programmes are:

Faculty of Interdisciplinary Design Studies 

The expected seats at the Faculty of Interdisciplinary Design Studies are:

Faculty of Textile, Apparel, and Lifestyle Accessory Design 

The expected seats at the Faculty of Textile, Apparel, and Lifestyle Accessory Design are: