NID DAT Previous Year Question Papers (2025-2016); Download Free PYQ PDFs

Result - 17 Feb '26

Assistant Manager

Updated on Dec 16, 2025 16:18 IST

NID DAT Entrance Exam will be conducted on December 21, 2025 for B.Des and M.Des programmes. NID DAT exam will be conducted in two stages: Stage 1 and Stage 2. Stage is is NID DAT 2026 Prelims and Stage 2 is NID DAT Mains. NID Prelims exam 2026 will be conducted offline for all the candidates in Enlgish language.

NID does not release previous year question papers online. Candidates preparing for NID DAT 2026 must download the NID PYQ PDF from here to become familiar with the pattern and exam syllabus. Get the direct link to download the NID question paper PDFs here.

NID DAT Entrance Exams are approaching now. Candidates who have applied for NID B.Des and NID M.Des programmes must be preparing for the NID DAT 2026 Prelims Exam. While preparing for the exam, students must solve NID Previous Year Question Papers and Sample Papers to know about the exam pattern, types of questions, marks, weightage, etc. Solving question papers will help candidates to gain the skill of time management and stress management.

Explore colleges based on NID Entrance Exam

DOT School of Design institute image

Chennai

Courses Offered12 courses4.3

Total Fees₹10.00 L

National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad institute image

Ahmedabad

Courses Offered8 courses4.1

Total Fees₹16.84 L

LPU - Lovely Professional University institute image

Jalandhar

Courses Offered3 courses3.8

Total Fees₹9.60 L

Woxsen University institute image

Hyderabad

Courses Offered4 courses4.3

Total Fees₹13.45 L

Want better recommendations?

There is a 90% more chance of getting best college recommendations by sharing preferences.

+ Add preferences

School of Design, MIT WPU institute image

Pune

Courses Offered6 courses4.2

Total Fees₹17.00 L

Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University - East Delhi Campus institute image

Delhi

Courses Offered3 courses4.7

Total Fees₹9.95 L

World University of Design institute image

Sonepat

Courses Offered10 courses3.8

Total Fees₹11.00 L

School of Design, UPES institute image

Dehradun

Courses Offered8 courses4.1

Total Fees₹22.65 L

Dr. D.Y. Patil School of Design institute image

Pune

Courses Offered5 courses4.4

Total Fees₹12.00 L

BITS Design School institute image

Mumbai

Courses Offered1 course

Total Fees₹29.40 L

Confused about which college or exam to opt for? assitentRcpRhsImage

Chat with our counselor
Get your personalised list of colleges & exams matching your preferences

View allCollections

NID DAT 2026 Prelims Exam will be conducted on December 21, 2025 for UG and PG programmes. The NID 2026 Admit cards are available now on the website. NID DAT Entrance Exam will have two stages. Stage 1 is NID DAT Prelims and Stage 2 is NID DAT Mains.

Latest Updates:

NID DAT 2026 Exam Soon: Check Things to Carry on Exam Day

Q: Can I carry the NID question paper with me after the exam?

No, the candidate is not allowed to carry the question paper of the NID exam with them after conclusion of the exam. In fact, the question papers of NID will not be released neither for that Prelims or that Mains. The reason for the non release of the question paper is because the NID question papers are highly subjective in nature. The question paper of NID DAT will be set in English language. Note that the candidate can download unofficial versions of the NID question papers released by the coaching institutes. These question papers will be mostly memory-based, compiled with the help of questions shared by candidates.

Q: How to download the NID sample papers?

NID sample papers can be downloaded from website of NID.

To download sample papers

Click on the sample paper
No need to log in to download sample papers
The sample papers are available in downloadable pdf format

Candidates may note that sample papers contain questions similar to the ones that are asked in the actual exam.

Q: Who sets NID DAT question paper?

Questions in NID DAT are drafted by an exam committee formulated by the National Institute of Design. The NID DAT exam is considering one of the toughest in the land, along with other popular entrance exams like NIFT and UCEED. On particular reason why NID DAT is so competitive is there are only 425 seats available for the B. Des programme, while candidates from all over the country can apply. The NID DAT exam comprises two stages. The candidate first appears in DAT Mains, which is a Design Aptitude Test. Those who qualify in that Prelims have to next appear in the that Mains. Note that the final results will be prepared by giving weightage to both that Prelims and that Mains.

Explore more Design exams with upcoming dates

NIFT Entrance Exam

LIVE

NIFT 202...

2 Feb '26

Check live updates

SAT India

Last date to apply for March A...

27 Feb '26

MITID DAT

MITID DAT 2026 application

17 Oct '25 - 28 Feb '26

CT SET

CT SET 2026 Application Form

28 Feb '26

UCEED

UCEED 2026 Result Date

6 Mar '26

SEED

SEED B.Des Round 2

12 Jan '26 - 12 Mar '26

SMEAT

SMEAT 2026 Application Form Da...

15 Dec '25 - 15 Mar '26

NMIMS DAT

NMIMS DAT 2026 Conduct of Stud...

22 Mar '26

WWI Entrance Exam

WWI Result 2026

1 Apr '26

IICD Entrance Exam

IICD Result 2026

9 Jun '26 - 15 Jun '26

Table of contents

NID DAT Prelims 2026 Exam Pattern for B.Des program
NID DAT Prelims 2026 Exam Pattern for M.Des program
NID DAT B.Des Question Paper
NID DAT M.Des Question Paper
Benefits of Solving NID DAT Previous Year Question Papers

NID DAT Prelims 2026 Exam Pattern for B.Des program

Candidates should check the NID B.Des exam pattern.

Particulars	Description
Duration	DAT Prelims paper for the B.Des program is THREE hours. The exam is usually conducted from 10 am - 1 pm.
Mode	The exam will be conducted as a paper-and-pencil/pen test
Sections	DAT Prelims question paper will have two sections - Part I & Part II
Total Questions	26 (approx.)
Total Marks	100 (25 Marks Part A and 75 Marks Part B)
Types of questions asked	Question paper may include textual and visual questions
Medium of the paper	English
Test duration	3 hours
Negative Marking	There will be no negative marking

NID DAT Prelims 2026 Exam Pattern for M.Des program

Candidates should check the NID M.Des exam pattern.

Particulars	Description
Sections	There will be TWO sections. Common Design Aptitude Test Discipline-Specific Test These two tests will together evaluate the Design Aptitude of the candidate.
Total Marks	100
Types of questions asked	A mixture of objective and subjective
Medium of the paper	English
Test duration	2 hours 30 minutes
Negative Marking	There will be no negative marking

NID DAT B.Des Question Paper

The question paper for NID B.Des are given below.

NID DAT Question paper	PDFs
NID DAT Question Paper 2025	Download Here
NID DAT Question Paper 2024	Download Here
NID DAT Question Paper 2023	Download Here
NID DAT Question Paper 2022	Download Here
NID DAT Question Paper 2021	Download Here
NID DAT Question Paper 2020	Download Here
NID DAT Question Paper 2019	Download Here
NID DAT Question Paper 2018	Download Here
NID DAT Question Paper 2017	Download Here
NID DAT Question Paper 2016	Download Here

Q: Will the National Institute of Design release NID question paper along with the answer key?

The National Institute of Design (NID) in its admission handbook has clearly mentioned that it will not release any question papers nor answer keys for the NID DAT exam. The institute has mentioned in the handbook that the Prelims and Mains question papers are highly subjective, and so don't have any model answers. Note that the NID DAT exam is conducted for admission to the MDes and BDes courses. The candidate may however download unofficial question papers for the Prelims and the Mains exam released by coaching institutes. The only thing the candidate needs to remember in this case is since they are not official, the questions may not be exact replicas; typically the questions are picked from candidates who have appeared in the exam.

Q: What is the benefit of solving NID sample papers?

The multiple benefits of solving sample papers to prepare for the NID DAT entrance exam. A few of them are illustrated below. By solving sample papers, the candidate will be able to have a clear picture regarding the types of questions asked, difficulty level of the exam, topic-wise number of questions asked, etc. The sample papers are a great tool of develop problem-solving skills. The candidate therefore needs to solve various types of questions, and not stick to one particular type. Another skill that can be developed is time management skills. Sample papers will also help the candidate identify weak areas and work on them. It is recommended that the candidate makes it a point to solve sample papers after completing a topic.

NID DAT M.Des Question Paper

The question paper for NID M.Des are given below.

NID DAT Question paper	PDFs
NID DAT Sample Paper 2025	Download Here
NID DAT Sample Paper 2024	Download Here
NID DAT Sample Paper I	Download Here
NID DAT Sample Paper II	Download Here
NID DAT Sample Paper III	Download Here
NID DAT Question paper 2018	Download Here

Benefits of Solving NID DAT Previous Year Question Papers

NID Previous year papers help students understand format, style, and type of questions that are frequently asked. NID previous year question paper can help familiarise with the NID DAT pattern. making them more comfortable on exam day.
Certain NID topics are repeatedly emphasized in the question paper. By solving NID previous year papers, candidates can identify these topics.
Practising with NID question paper PDFs helps students improve their time allocation.
By solving these papers, students can evaluate their NID preparation level and know their weak and strong areas.
Practice with NID past papers can increase a student's confidence. Familiarity with the NID exam pattern and types of questions reduces exam anxiety.
Continuous practice improves student's ability to answer questions quickly and accurately, which is crucial in most competitive exams.

Videos you may like

About the Author

Sayeba Naushad

Assistant Manager

Sayeba Naushad is a commerce postgraduate from Banaras Hindu University. She has over five years of experience in content writing and editing. She has a nose for current events in design field. At Shiksha.com, she s

Read Full Bio

Download Important Dates for Design Exams