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Design courses after the 12th Arts have seen an exponential growth in the past few years. Students who are interested in pursuing a design course after completing 12th have many options to choose from. By completing a design course, students can build their careers in fashion, advertising, animation, gaming, and interior design. Read the complete article by Careers360 to know about the design courses after completing the 12th standard from an arts background, and also check the career opportunities and skills required for the design programme.
Yes, students who have completed their 12th standard from an arts background are eligible to apply for any of the design programmes in India. Students who enjoy drawing, storytelling, visual communication, and having innovative ideas can pursue a design course in their undergraduate studies. Most of the institutes and colleges accept students from all streams for the design programmes.
Arts students have an added advantage as they have a creative mindset and have a basic knowledge of visual thinking, storytelling, and artistic expression. But still, students are advised to carefully check the eligibility criteria and admission process of the institute they wish to apply.
The admission process for the design programme generally consists of entrance exams, portfolio submission, a studio test, and a personal interview round. Upon clearing the selection process, candidates will be given seats in their desired programme.
Candidates who are interested in appearing for the design entrance exams after completing their 12th standard from an arts background can check the table below to know some of the top design entrance exams in India:
Exam Name | Details |
National Institute of Design | |
National Institute of Fashion Technology | |
BDes admission in all the participating institutes | |
Design programmes in all the participating institutes | |
Symbiosis Institute of Design | |
Pearl Academy | |
MIT Institute of Design | |
UPES School of Design |
Candidates who wish to pursue a design programme after completing their 12th standard in an arts background have various options. Students should first understand the eligibility criteria for every programme and college. As the eligibility criteria for every college differ, candidates can check the general eligibility criteria as given below:
Eligibility Criteria | Details |
Education Qualification | 10+2 from any recognised board |
Stream | Students from any stream are eligible (Including commerce students) |
Admission Process | Entrance exam, Portfolio and studio test round, Personal interview round |
Course Duration | 3 Years |
Check some of the popular design courses to choose after completing the 12th standard in Arts:
Most Arts students already have a creative mindset, strong visual thinking skills, and a basic understanding of storytelling. However, to build a successful career in the design industry, students should also develop the following essential skills.
Time Management
Observation skills
Software knowledge
Problem-solving skills
The Cutoff mainly depends on the choice of exam preferred by the candidate. Most of the colleges give admission after evaluating candidates' entrance exam scores, portfolio, studio test, and personal interview round. The details given below are about all the important design entrance exams along with the previous year’s cutoff score:
Design Entrance Exam | Previous Year’s Cutoff | |
NID DAT | 59.60 | |
NIFT Entrance Exam | Opening: 3 | Closing: 170 |
UCEED | 55.42 | |
Design students will be able to find various career opportunities after completing their graduation. Students can check the following list of career opportunities, including the industry type:
Industry | Job Role |
Fashion & Apparel | |
Advertising & Branding | |
Architecture & Construction | |
IT & Software | |
Entertainment & Gaming | |
Textile Industry | |
Jewellery Industry | |
Digital Media | |
Event & Exhibition Industry | |
Advertising Agencies | Creative Director |
The salary offered to design graduates depends on factors such as the institute, specialisation, skills, internship experience, portfolio, and the recruiting company. Check the below-given entry-level salary packages for all the mentioned job roles:
Job Role | Average Salary Package (P.A) |
Fashion Designer | 3 - 6 LPA |
Graphic Designer | 3 - 5 LPA |
UI/UX Designer | 4 - 6 LPA |
Interior Designer | 4 - 5 LPA |
Textile Designer | 3 - 5 LPA |
Animator | 4 - 7 LPA |
Reliance Retail | Aditya Birla Fashion & Retail |
IKEA | Godrej Interio |
Amazon | Flipkart |
Myntra | Titan |
Apart from these companies, many leading fashion brands and product design companies also actively recruit design graduates.
Students who have completed their 12th standard with an arts background are eligible to take admission into design programmes. Candidates are advised to check all the design programmes, admission process, eligibility criteria, and selection process before applying for any of the design entrance exams. Choosing the right design programme as per their interest will help them to build their career in a faster way.
On Question asked by student community
Hello Dear Student,
Top government-run colleges offering a Bachelor of Design (BDes) in UI/UX in India. Admissions to these premier institutions are primarily based on national-level entrance exams like UCEED, NID DAT, and the NIFT Entrance Exam.
You can check, find and access more information here:
https://www.careers360.com/courses/ui-ux-course
https://www.careers360.com/courses/b-des-bachelor-of-design
Hope it
Hello Dear Student,
The total cost of pursuing a B.Des degree in India generally ranges from 4 lakh to 25 lakh or more for the entire course, depending on the institute.
Fees vary based on the college, location, and facilities offered.
Additional expenses may include hostel, mess, study materials, and
Hi,
The MIT Institute of Design B.Des final results for 2026 were published on May20, 2026 on the official portal. Candidates can download their scorecards by logging into the official website with their email ID and password.
You can also the results at https://design.careers360.com/articles/mit-dat-bdes-final-result-2026-out
Hello Romika, Please check the FDDI AIST BDes sample paper here . You can also check all the FDDI previous year sample papers for a better understanding and better preparation. Please let me know if I can assist you with anything else.
Hello Ishika,
For CUET 2026 exam preparation, you can refer to the CUET study materials such as NCERT books which are foundational textbooks covers all the important subjects, for science focused books you can refer to R.S. Aggarwal books and for current affairs you can refer to McGraw-hill books. These
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