NIFT Artisan Category provides design education to traditional craft families and supports the growth of Indian crafts. It allows candidates to study at the top design college of India without appearing for the NIFT Stage 1 Examination. Let's see how.
NIFT Artisan Category is an opportunity given by NIFT for candidates coming from an artisan background. It is a special path which provides admission to children of artisans, like handicrafts, handlooms, etc. NIFT provides B.Des under this category. Candidates need to fill the application form in December and appear for the exam in April. The application fee is INR 2000 for General category and INR 500 for SC/ST and PwD category. The age limit of the candidate must be below 24 years as on 1 August of the admission year.
Candidates who want to appear under this category will be required to appear NIFT Artisan Test and NIFT Personal Interview. Candidates under this category are not required to appear for NIFT Stage 1 Examination.
- Who Can Apply for NIFT B.Des Artisan?
- Programmes Offered by NIFT for Artisan Category
- NIFT B.Des Artisan Category Overview
- Timeline for NIFT B.Des Artisan Category
- Eligibility Criteria for NIFT B.Des under Artisan Category
- Components and Marks for Artisan Skill Test for NIFT Stage 2
- NIFT Artisan College
Who Can Apply for NIFT B.Des Artisan?
A candidate can apply if:
-
They have passed Class 12.
-
They are below 24 years of age as on 1 August of the admission year.
-
They are an artisan themselves or the son/daughter of an artisan.
-
They possess a valid Artisan Card issued to self, father, or mother by Development Commissioner (Handicrafts), Ministry of Textiles Development Commissioner (Handlooms), Ministry of Textiles or State Government authorities
Commonly asked questions
Candidates will be able to check the cutoff for NIFT Delhi on the website of NIFT: nift.admissions.nic.in. The opening and closing rank of all the programmes is given on this page.
The expected cutoff for NIFT 2027 for B.Des is:
| Category | Expected Cutoff for B.Des |
|---|---|
| Open | 30-80 |
| EWS | 26-29 |
| OBC | 26-29 |
| SC | 22 |
| ST | 19 |
NIFT cutoff for a participating NIFT is the last rank for which admission is offered in for a particular programme and category. This means, if a candidate fails to score a rank equal to or higher than the cutoff rank, they don't get admission. Typically, a higher ranked institute will invite: More applications Higher-ranked candidates This in turn pushes up the cutoff in higher ranked (or popular) institutes. Likewise, a lower-ranked institute will receive comparatively fewer number of applications, and mostly from lower-ranked candidates. This means, cut-off in these institutes are lower making it much easier to get admission.
The expected cutoff for NIFT M.Des is given below:
| Category | Expected Cutoff M.Des |
|---|---|
| Open | 26-70 |
| EWS | 22 |
| OBC | 22 |
| SC | 16 |
| ST | 16-18 |
Programmes Offered by NIFT for Artisan Category
NIFT offers B.Des in the following.
- B.Des in Fashion Design
- B.Des in Leather Design
- B.Des in Accessory Design
- B.Des in Textile Design
- B.Des in Knitwear Design
- B.Des in Fashion Communication.
NIFT B.Des Artisan Category Overview
Check out the overview of NIFT Artisan Category.
| Particulars | Details |
|---|---|
| Courses Offered by NIFT | B.Des programmes at NIFT campuses |
| Artisan Requirement | Candidate or parent must possess a valid Artisan Card |
| Entrance Exam | No need to appear for NIFT Stage 1 |
| NIFT Selection Process | Artisan Skill Test + Personal Interview |
| Merit Preparation | Based on Skill Test and Interview performance |
| Seats Available | 2 supernumerary seats per campus |
| Degree Type | Same NIFT degree as regular students |
| Placement Opportunities | Same placements, internships, and career support as other NIFT students |
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Commonly asked questions
List of cut off NIFT 2026 would contain the ranks of candidates ranging from opening to closing ranks for every participating institute. Some of the many categories for which the cut-off would be announced include General, SC, ST, OBC-NCl, Domicile, and PwD categories. Candidates must refer to the cut-off list as per their categories for the programmes they wish to pursue.
Rank from which admission gets provided is known as the opening rank. On the other hand, the minimum rank from which admission is given is called the closing rank. Admission is offered only to those candidates whose rank is the same as or above the closing rank.
The Cut off for NIFT Mumbai 2025 for B.Des in Textile Design will be out soon. In the meanwhile, we can have a look at the Cutoff 2024 to get a rough idea.
The following table presents the Cutoff for Round 1 under All India Quota for NIFT Mumbai 2024:
Category | Opening Rank | Closing Rank |
|---|---|---|
| OBC | 722 | 2044 |
| Gen-EWS | 581 | 2653 |
| Open | 301 | 570 |
| Open (PwD) | 5654 | 5654 |
| SC | 3522 | 4385 |
| ST | 5076 | 5499 |
The cut-off of NIFT for the various academic courses is not fixed. This is because the cut-off depends on variables like seat intake, the performance of applicants in the NIFT exam, total number of applications received for admission, etc. Now these variables may change from year to year. For instance, the number of candidates appearing in NIFT and qualifying the exam may be different across the years. And when that happens, the cut-off also changes. Typically, if the seat intake increases, the cut-off goes down and vice versa. Likewise, if the number of applicants increases, expect a higher cut-off.
Explore colleges based on NIFT Entrance Exam
Timeline for NIFT B.Des Artisan Category
Go through the timeline for NTA NIFT B.Des in the Artisan Category.
| Activities | Timeline |
|---|---|
| Online Registration | 08 December 2025 |
| Last date for Online Registration | 28 February 2026 |
| Admit Card (Online only) | April 22, 2026 |
| Artisan Skill Test and Personal Interview | April 2026 |
| Declaration of Final Result (Online) | June 03, 2026 |
| Seat Allocation | June 2026 |
Eligibility Criteria for NIFT B.Des under Artisan Category
Read the eligibility Criteria for NIFT B.Des programme under the Artisan Category.
| Programme | Eligibility Criteria |
|---|---|
| Age Criteria |
|
| Educational Qualification | Passed the plus 2 level examination in the 10+2 pattern of examination of any recognized Central/ State Board of Secondary Examination, such as Central Board of Secondary Education / State Board New Delhi / Council for Indian School of Certificate Examination, New Delhi. OR A pass grade in the Senior Secondary School Examination conducted by the National Open School with a minimum of five subjects. OR 3 or 4-years Diploma recognized by AICTE or a State Board of Technical Education after secondary school examination. OR Any Public School/Board/University Examination in India or in foreign countries recognized by the Association of Indian Universities as equivalent to 10+2 system. AND Artisan/Ward of Artisan can seek admission under this category on submission of a valid Artisan Card issued to Self/ Father/ Mother by the Development Commissioner (Handicraft), or Development Commissioner (Handlooms), Ministry of Textiles, Government of India or have applied for the Artisan Card before the launch of Prospectus for Admissions-2026. |
Commonly asked questions
The Cutoff for NIFT Mumbai for B.Des in Fashion Design 2026 for round 2 are out . We can get a fair idea by looking at the Cut offs for NIFT Mumbai Fashion Design 2026
The following table presents the Cutoff for Round 2under All India Quota:
Category | Closing Rank |
|---|---|
| Open | 84 |
| OBC | 382 |
| EWC | 371 |
| SC | 536 |
| PwD | 1746 |
| ST | 4321 |
The category-wise cut-off for the Accessory Design programme for NIFT Bangalore campus is given below:
Category | Opening Rank | Closing Rank |
EWS | 1099 | 2179 |
OBC (NC) | 438 | 1333 |
Open | 35 | 482 |
SC | 2034 | 4214 |
ST | 2839 | 7286 |
Note that reserved category candidates will be considered for admission to both their reserved and open categories.
Candidates can check NIFT cutoff 2026 online on the official website of the National Institute of Fashion Technology. NIFT cutoff is released as a PDF file containing the opening and closing ranks. The cut-off would be category-specific. So, the candidate needs to check the cut-off for the category they belong to. Also, note that candidates from reserved categories will be considered for admission under general category as well. However, candidates belonging to open category will not be considered for admission under reserved categories.
Components and Marks for Artisan Skill Test for NIFT Stage 2
Candidates under the Artisan Category have to appear for Artisan Skill Test. It will comprise creative ability and basic 3-D modelling ability (using 3-D modelling clay) or other material(s). Check out the components and marks of the Artisan Skill Test. The exam is condcuted with the Stage 2 Entrance Exam.
| Component | Marks |
|---|---|
| Artisan Skill Test |
70
|
| Visualization of form and space | |
| Innovative and Creative use of material | |
| Composition of Elements | |
| Construction skill and Finesse of the model | |
| Overall presentation | |
| Write-up: | |
| Explanation and Communication of concept | |
| Language | |
| Personal Interview (verification of documents/eligibility) | 30 |
| Total Marks | 100 |
NIFT Artisan College
The 20 participating NIFTs offer B.Des Artisan courses with specialisations in various disciplines.
| S.No | NIFT Campus |
|---|---|
| 1 | NIFT New Delhi |
| 2 | NIFT Chennai |
| 3 | NIFT Gandhinagar |
| 4 | NIFT Hyderabad |
| 5 | NIFT Kolkata |
| 6 | NIFT Mumbai |
| 7 | NIFT Bengaluru |
| 8 | NIFT Raebareli |
| 9 | NIFT Bhopal |
| 10 | NIFT Kannur |
| 11 | NIFT Shillong |
| 12 | NIFT Patna |
| 13 | NIFT Kangra |
| 14 | NIFT Bhubaneswar |
| 15 | NIFT Jodhpur |
| 16 | NIFT Srinagar |
| 17 | NIFT Panchkula |
| 18 | NIFT Daman |
| 19 | NIFT Varanasi |
| 20 | NIFT Nava Raipur |
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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
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