National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad Eligibility

Minimum qualifying criteria for NID DAT are the minimum marks candidate needs to secure for admission. Category-wise cut-off would be released at the time of counseling and seat allotment. Cut-off would be prepared by considering factors: total number of applicants, merit ranks of applicants in NID DAT, seat intake of applied programme, etc. 

Applications for NID DAT 2026 will open in September 2025 (tentatively). Candidates who have passed or will appear for higher secondary (10+2) qualifying examinations in the academic year 2025–26 in any stream (Science, Arts, Commerce, Humanities etc.) from any recognised board of education such as CBSE, IB, ICSE or equivalent could apply.

Candidates seekling admission to the M.Des programme must have complete their 3-year or 4-year Bachelor Degree programme in any discipline.

Candidates who have done full-time Diploma of minimum 4-year duration in Design/Fine Arts/Applied Arts/ Architecture, after 12th standard or equivalent to 12th standard, from any university or institute recognised by law in India, may also apply. 

The National Institute of Design (NID) will release the eligibility criteria for the NID DAT for the B.Des and M.Des courses through the respective admission handbooks. The eligibility criteria outlines requirements like academic qualification, minimum marks, age limit, number of attempts, etc.  

Yes, a student from the GSEB (Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board) can get admission to the National Institute of Design (NID). Admission to NID is not confined to college students from any unique schooling board. However, applicants need to meet the following eligibility criteria and correctly bypass the required front exams.

The National Institute of Design (NID) Ahmedabad's Bachelor of Design (BDes) study requires completion of 10+2 or equivalent from a recognised board in any stream (Science, Commerce, or Arts). Candidates must be 20 years old or younger as of June 30 of the admission year, with a three-year relaxation for reserved category candidates. Candidates must also pass the two-stage NID Design Aptitude Test (DAT), which consists of preliminary and final exams that test design skills, creativity, and problem-solving ability. The official NID website provides detailed criteria and admission guidelines.

If you have passed senior secondary exam from National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) with minimum five subjects, then you are eligible for NID DAT. The National Institute of Design recognizes boards like CBSE, IB, ICSE, or equivalent.

The candidate must make sure that they meet the eligibility criteria before filling out the NID DAT 2026 application form.

Note that all details entered by the candidate in the application form will be checked at the time of counseling. If there is any discrepancy, the candidate may be disqualified.

The overall criteria for MDes in NID Ahmedabad is four year duration Bachelor degree in any specialisations from any recognised university or institution. NID Ahmedabad offers MDes programme at the postgraduate level that lasts for two and a half years. Admission 2024 is based on NID entrance exams. MDes is offered in 19 disciplines across all 3 campuses in the following departments: Faculty of Communication Design, Faculty of Industrial Design, Faculty of Interdisciplinary Design, Faculty of IT Integrated Design, and Faculty of Textile, Apparel, Lifestyle and Accessory Design. 

Candidates seeking admission to NID Bangalore MDes must check the eligibiliity and selection criteria of the course, mentioned below, before applying: