How to Crack NIFT Entrance Exam 2026?: Check NIFT CAT & GAT Prepartion Plan & Previous Year Question
National Institute of Fashion Technology Entrance Exam 2026 ( NIFT Entrance Exam )
The NIFT entrance exam is currently conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) to shortlist aspirants for admission in courses like Bachelor of Design (BDes), Bachelor of Fashion Technology (BFTech), Master of Design (MDes), Master of Fashion Management (MFM), and Master of Fashion Technology (MFTech) offered at NIFT campuses. Go through the list of colleges offering admission based on NIFT Entrance Exam scores/ranks. Sources share that each year, more than 40,000 students appear in the NIFT entrance exam to secure admission to fill around 4,387 seats. Although NIFT Entrance Exam is not high on the difficulty level but one needs to be at his/her creative best to crack the exam. And what better way to form a prep strategy for it than to know what to expect in the entrance test?
To secure admission to the BDes course offered at any of the NIFT campuses, candidates need to know NIFT entrance exam pattern. For NIFT BDes admissions, aspirants need to appear for three tests, which are the Creative Ability Test (CAT), the General Ability Test (GAT), and the Situation Test. On the other hand, for MDes course admissions, aspirants need to appear for CAT, GAT and PI admission rounds. However, for the BFTech course, candidates need to take only the GAT. But for MFM and MFTech course admissions, aspirants need to appear for the GAT and GD/PI admission round.
- NIFT Entrance Exam GAT Pattern 2026
- NIFT Entrance Exam Evaluation Criteria for CAT 2026
- NIFT Entrance Exam Evaluation Criteria for GAT 2026
- NIFT Entrance Exam Evaluation Criteria for Situation Test 2026
- Tips to Crack NIFT Entrance Exam 2025
NIFT Entrance Exam GAT Pattern 2026
The NIFT Pattern for GAT are:
| Program | B.Des | M.Des |
|---|---|---|
| Paper | GAT | GAT |
| Mode of exam | Computer-based exam | Computer-based exam |
| Language | English/ Hindi | English/ Hindi |
| Test Duration | 120 minutes | 120 minutes |
| Sections | Number of Questions | Number of Questions |
| Communication Ability |
40
|
30 |
| English Comprehension | 30 | |
| Quantitative Ability | 20 | 20 |
| Analytical Ability | 15 | 25 |
| General Knowledge and Current Affairs | 25 | 15 |
| TOTAL | 100 | 120 |
NIFT GAT 2026 Exam Pattern (Revised) - B.F.Tech
The expected NIFT GAT Pattern for B.F.Tech are:
| Program | B.F.Tech | |
|---|---|---|
| Paper Name | GAT - Section A (CBT) | GAT - Section B (CBT) |
| Language of written test | English/Hindi | English/Hindi |
| Test Duration | 180 minutes | |
| Sections | Number of questions | Number of questions |
| Communication Ability and English Comprehension |
40 | NIL |
| Quantitative Ability | 20 | 15 |
| Analytical & Logical Ability | 15 | 15 |
| General Knowledge and Current Affairs |
25 | NIL |
| Case Study | NIL | 20 |
| Total | 100 | 50 |
NIFT GAT 2026 Exam Pattern - M.F.M & M.F.Tech
Note that no changes have been made to the exam pattern for the M.F.M. and M.F.Tech courses.
| Program | M.F.Tech | MFM |
|---|---|---|
| Paper | GAT | GAT |
| Language of written test | English/Hindi | English/Hindi |
| Duration | 180 minutes | 180 minutes |
| Sections | Number of questions |
Number of questions
|
| Communication Ability & English Comprehension | 45 | 50 |
| Case Study | 25 | 40 |
| Quantitative Ability | 30 | 10 |
| Analytical & Logical Ability | 25 | 25 |
| General Knowledge And Current Affairs | 25 | 25 |
| TOTAL | 150 | 150 |
NIFT Entrance Exam Evaluation Criteria for CAT 2026
In the Creative Ability Test, candidates are evaluated on the basis of their power of observation, intuition skill, innovation in the development of a concept, as well as their design ability. An important aspect to keep in mind while attempting this section is the creative and innovative use of colours and illustration skills.
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NIFT Chennai cutoff 2025 has been released for different categories of students belonging to the General AI quota. Considering the Round 1 cutoff, the closing ranks for General AI category students varied between 130 and 1420. The most sought-after course for admission with the lowest cutoff rank of 130 was Master of Fashion Management (MFM). For other courses and specialisations, the cutoff ranks are tabulated below:
| Course | NIFT Round 1 Cutoff 2025 |
|---|---|
| B.Des. in Accessory Design | 551 |
| B.Des. in Textile Design | 972 |
| B.Des. in Knitwear Design | 1220 |
| B.FTech. in Apparel Production | 253 |
| Master of Fashion Management (MFM) | 130 |
| B.Des. in Fashion Design | 471 |
| B.Des. in Leather Design | 1420 |
| B.Des. in Fashion Communication | 299 |
For NIFT Delhi B.Des admission, candidates must have passed Class 12 from any recognised 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. A passing grade in the Senior Secondary School examination conducted by the National Open School with a minimum of five subjects is also eligible to apply for the National Institute of Fashion Technology Delhi.
NIFT Entrance Exam Evaluation Criteria for GAT 2026
In this section, candidates are evaluated on the basis of their knowledge of General Knowledge and Current affairs, English comprehension, communication ability, quantitative ability, and analytical ability.
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NIFT Entrance Exam Evaluation Criteria for Situation Test 2026
Though at face value the NIFT Situation Test seems like a simple craft examination, the fact is that it evaluates candidates at a far more in-depth level. Besides material exploration and management skills, NIFT also lays great emphasis on time management skills, and students are closely monitored in the Situation Test on whether they have managed to complete the task at hand in two hours or not.
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Read the following for the NIFT Situation Test 2025:
Tips to Crack NIFT Entrance Exam 2025
Some pointers that candidates need to keep in mind to crack the NIFT entrance exam are as follows:
NIFT situation test will test candidate on Colour scheme, Space visualization, Construction skill, Finesse of the model, Composition of elements, Overall presentation, Innovative and creative use of given material, etc. Situation Test will be evaluated on the spot.
Model made by candidate will not be kept for future reference. Candidate must make sure that their model is unique and stands out from the crowd. After making model, candidate must write about the model- write-up explaining the model.
No, the BDes program's admission requirements are entrance-based. Admission to the NIFT Shillong BDes programme is determined by an applicant's performance on the NIFT Entrance Exam. Candidates who make the short list based on their exam results are invited to a round of in-person interviews, which is followed by counseling. There is no provision of direct admission to the courses at NIFT Shillong.
On the day of the NIFT written exam, the candidate must bring with them
- NIFT admit card
- A valid photo ID proof
- HB Pencils, Eraser, Sharpener, Dry Colours
Items which are not allowed inside the exam venue are Water bottle, Papers, Notes, Books, Calculator, Electronic gadgets, Mobile phone, Bag, Handbag, Correction marker/ white fluid.
1. Be innovative: In order to stand out from the crowd, candidates need to present original ideas while answering questions in the exam. Experts share that NIFT CAT as well as GAT evaluate candidates on the basis of how creative and unique their solution to a problem is.
2. Work on Time management: Managing time while appearing for NIFT Entrance Exam is of a lot of importance. This is because while attempting any question in NIFT exam, candidates not only need to present an innovative idea but also need to ensure that they complete their paper in a given time duration. So, they have to draw the complete answer and that too as per timelines. Thus, candidates need to work on their speed to neatly represent scenarios for a given question in the exam.
Candidates need to lay emphasis on speed because while attempting questions in the NIFT exam, they would not have adequate time to make changes to their answer (drawing). Thus, while attempting questions in the exam, aspirants are advised to first create a rough drawing with a light hand, and only once they are satisfied with it should they work on the finer details of the sketch. To ace this aspect of the exam, aspirants are advised to practice sketching as much as they can.
3. Practice sample papers/past years’ questions
Candidates are advised to practice as many sample questions as well as past years’ question papers as they can. This simple exercise will offer them an opportunity to develop an idea of the type of questions asked in the NIFT Entrance Exam. Apart from this, aspirants will also be able to gauge the difficulty level of the questions asked in this design entrance exam.
Another aspect that is catered to by solving past years’ papers/sample papers is that candidates can work on their time management strategy and formulate a plan on how they can quickly and effectively attempt their NIFT Entrance Exam.
Also Read:
| NIFT Statistics 2025: How Many Students Appeared for the Exam; Attendance and Participation | NIFT Marks vs NIFT Rank: What Your Score Means | NIFT vs Other Design Colleges: Which one is right for you? |
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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Student Forum
Anything you would want to ask experts?Answered 2 days ago
After the release of the NIFT Stage 1 result, NTA will conduct NIFT stage 2 exam for candidates who have cleared the Stage 1 exam. NIFT Stage 2 will have Situation test and Personal Interview.
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 2 days ago
You will not be offered any direct admission to NIFT Delhi even if you are a class 12th topper. Candidates must fill the NIFT Entrance Application and appear for the exam. If they clear the cutoff, admission is offered.
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 2 days ago
NIFT and NID are equally tough. NIFT has two stages: NIFT Written exam and NIFT Situation Test and Personal Interview, whereas NID DAT also has two stages: NID DAT Prelims and NID Mains, which include Studio test and Personal Interview.
Candidate who is preparing for NIFT can give NID DAT entrance e
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 2 days ago
NIFT and UCEED are equally tough. NIFT has more levels or stage where as UCEED has only one level. UCEED focuses more on Graphic design, Product Design, etc., whereas NIFT focuses on Fashion design, Textile design, etc. The difficulty level of the exam depends on the preparation of the candidates.
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 2 days ago
NIFT Entrance Exam consists of NIFT Written exam: GAT and CAT. After this, the second stage is NIFT Situation Test and Personal Interview.
NIFT CAT is said to be the hardest and most time taking in the first stage. In the second stage, NIFT Situation test is considered to be hard. But all these can b
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 3 days ago
NTA will be releasing the NIFT 2026 Question Paper for Stage 1 along with the provisional Answer Key. Candidates will be able to download the question paper by logging into NIFT portal.
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 3 days ago
Good score for B.F.Tech is 95+ for General, 80 for OBC, 60 for SC/ST. The final result will be declared in April 2026.
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 3 days ago
Yes, 40 is a good marks for NIFT B.Des 2026 this year (expected). For NIFT B.Des, General Category, 40 - 50 is the goodscore for the general category, for OBC, it will be around 30, for SC/ST, it will be around 30.
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 3 days ago
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 |
S
Contributor-Level 10
Answered 3 days ago
The expected cutoff for NIFT 2026 for B.Des is:
| Category | Expected Cutoff for B.Des |
|---|---|
| Open | 30-80 |
| EWS | 26-29 |
| OBC | 26-29 |
| SC | 22 |
| ST | 19 |
S
Contributor-Level 10
Admission to NIFT Kangra is entrance based for the UG and PG programmes.
NIFT Kangra admits students on the basis of entrance and other admission rounds.
Step 1: Applicants must first pass the "written test," also referred to as the NIFT entrance exam.
Stage 2: Candidates who made it through the first round take the situation test. The overall outcomes of both phases are examined in order to make the choice.
The NIFT entrance exam, sometimes referred to as the "written test," is the first requirement for candidates seeking a master's degree or a UG degree. Successful applicants undergo in-person interviews following the screening process. Candidates are selected by summing up their performances in various rounds.