NID DAT 2026 (B.Des & M.Des): Exam Analysis (OUT), Paper Difficulty, Student Review & Answer Key Live Updates

NID DAT login credentials are Email ID and Date of Birth.

Candidates who get shortlisted based on their DAT Prelims have to next appear in the DAT Mains exam. 

No weightage is given to NID DAT Prelims in the final score. NID Prelims 2026 is just a qualifying exam to sit in the NID DAT Mains for B.Des and M.Des.

The NID DAT Mains 2026 test for the M.Des program has two test components:

1. Studio Test
2. Personal Interview

The seven NID campuses accepting NID entrance exam scores/ranks for admission include

The questions asked in NID DAT 2026 are

• Question 4: Solar panel, was given. Make three Instagram posts for this. Give title, content and draw.
• Question 5: With the help of a hand given. Interpret and draw, rope, plant, hammer with hand. 
• Question 6: There is a bus, and students are inside the bus. Draw how you will protect yourself in the bus when the brake is applied.

Drawing question asked in NID DAT 2026 Entrance Test are (according to the students):

• Question 1: Make a 3-story scene.
• Question 2: A spec was given; make three conventional uses of it.
• Question 3: A bottle was given. Draw it when it three different situations: When kept in hospital near bedside; When it is in a restaurant, When it is to be used in a get-together in your house.

The analysis is out for NID DAT B.Des 2026. The question paper was subjective, involved creativity, imagination, ideation, etc. 

The cutoff for the NID Exam 2026 is expected to go down this year.

The NID DAT 2026 Question paper for B.Des and M.Des was a bit different this time. More focus was given on conceptualization, ideation.

There were 6 drawing questions. The total number of sketches, drawing to be drawn was 14. More focus was on subjective part.

There were no aptitude questions, according to the students who have appeared for NID DAT 2026.

There were 6 drawing questions, with sub-sections in each.

Most of the students who appeared for NID DAT 2026 Exam found the paper to be difficult and a bit lengthy. 

NID DAT will not release any answer key for B.Des and M.Des. The result will be announced directly for UG and PG courses.

The exam analysis will be released here soon for B.Des and M.Des.

NID DAT 2026 exam has concluded for B.Des and M.Des programmes.

You should attempt all the questions in NID DAT 2026, as there is no negative marking. The question paper is of 100 marks.

No, NID will not release any answer key for NID Prelims 2026 for B.Des and M.Des.

NID DAT B.Des rechecking window will open on April 07, 2026 and will close on April 08, 2026. NID M.Des rechecking window will open from February 17, 2026 to February 18, 2026. 

NID DAT Prelims Result 2026 for M.Des will be out on February 17, 2026.

NID DAT Prelims Result 2026 for B.Des will be out onApril 07, 2026. Candidates who will clear the NID Prelims will be eligible for NID Mains.

Gate closing time of NID DAT for B.Des and M.Des is 9:30 AM. No candidate will be allowed to appear for the exam after 10:00 AM under any circumstances

The tentative question paper structure of DAT Prelims for the B.Des program is given below.

The reporting time for NID DAT is 8:30 AM. The exam will begin at 10 AM.

There will be no negative marking in NID DAT 2026.

The NID DAT question paper may include textual and visual questions

The exam will be conducted as a paper-and-pencil/pen test.

The exam analysis will provide insight into the NID DAT 2026 question paper, including the section-wise and overall difficulty level, weightage, good attempts, and expected cutoff.

Yes, along with the NID DAT 2026 admit card, you will also need a valid photo ID proof. 

Candidates can carry any of the following photo ID cards with them on the NID DAT exam day.

• Aadhaar Card
• Student ID card
• Voter ID Card
• Driving licence
• Pan Card
• Passport

The name and address of the allotted exam center will be mentioned in the NID DAT 2026 Admit card.

Candidates who get shortlisted based on their DAT Prelims have to next appear in the DAT Mains exam.

The NID Design Aptitude Tests 2026 will be conducted in two stages:
Stage 1: Design Aptitude Test (DAT) Prelims
Stage 2: Design Aptitude Test (DAT) Mains

NID DAT 2026 Prelims exam is on December 21, 2026 for B.Des and M.Des.

NID DAT 2026 Prelims exams will be conducted in 17 cities in India. The details will be mentioned in the NID DAT Admit card. The cities are Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Chennai, Dehradun, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Jorhat, Kochi, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Nagpur, New Delhi and Patna.

NID DAT Analysis will be released here soon.

• Date of Exam: Sunday, 21 December 2025
• Reporting Time: 08:30 AM
• Gate Closing Time: 09:30 AM
• Time of Exam: 10:00 AM to 01:00 PM

In case candidates do not have any of photo ID proofs, they should get both Part “A” and Part “B” of the NID DAT Admit Card attested by the Principal of their current school/college or a Gazetted Officer.

NID DAT digital copy of admit card will not be considered. You must bring a hard copy of admit card.

Candidates must bring blue/black ball-point pen, scissor, glue stick, lead pencil (of varying grades), colors (such as oil pastels/color pencils/sketch pens, etc.) eraser, sharpeners, ruler, transparent writing pad etc. for NID DAT Prelims examination.

No refreshments shall be provided by NID for the NID DAT Prelims centre.

Items which are not allowed are mobile phone, any type of watch, bag, handbag, papers, notes, books, calculator, electronic gadgets, correction marker/white fluid, etc.

M.Des program has a combined intake of 347 seats and is offered at 3 campuses: NID Ahmedabad, NID Bengaluru, and NID Gandhinagar.

NID B.Des course has a seat intake of 589 seats and is available at NID Ahmedabad, NID Andhra Pradesh, NID Assam, NID Haryana, and NID Madhya Pradesh.

NID DAT 2026 exam analysis will be out soon.

 Candidates must bring a printed copy of NID DAT Admit card with them for the examination.

Candidates must bring any ONE valid Original photo ID proof for verification such as (i) Voter ID Card, (ii) PAN Card, (iii) Driving License, (iv) Student ID issued by current school/ college (v) Passport (vi) Aadhar Card, etc. to the examination centre. In case you do not have any of the above photo ID proofs, please get both Part “A” and Part “B” of this Admit Card attested by the Principal of your current school/college or a Gazetted Officer.

The duration of the DAT Prelims paper for the B.Des program is THREE hours. The exam is usually conducted from 10 am - 1 pm.

NID DAT 2026 exam will be conducted from 10 AM to 1 PM. 

NID DAT 2026 exam will be conducted tomorrow, on December 21. 2025 for UG and PG programmes.