Is UCEED Tougher Than NID: Question Paper Pattern Comparison

Is UCEED Tougher Than NID: Question Paper Pattern Comparison

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Ritika JonwalUpdated on 02 Dec 2025, 07:24 PM IST

Hey there students, Choosing between NID and UCEED is an important and intimidating decision for aspiring designers in India. Both the exams NID and UCEED are gateway to prestigious design institutions but they differ significantly in their approach of selection, assessment, syllabus and teaching methodologies as well. This article is curated especially for students to understand the approach for both the exams and detailed comparison to help students prepare and understand for NID and UCEED exams for a glorious design career.

This Story also Contains

  1. NID vs UCEED Exam: Previous Years Exam Analysis Overview
  2. Detailed Comparison Between NID and UCEED
  3. Topic-wise: NID and UCEED Question Paper Comparison
  4. Skillset Comparison for Each Section: NID vs UCEED
  5. Difficulty Level and Trends for NID and UCEED Exams
  6. Selection Format: NID vs UCEED
Is UCEED Tougher Than NID: Question Paper Pattern Comparison
Is UCEED Tougher Than NID

NID vs UCEED Exam: Previous Years Exam Analysis Overview

Students are advised to go through an in-depth analysis of detailed comparison between NID and UCEED based on the student’s and experts' feedback. For the analysis the questions were categorized by the topic, skills required, difficulty level, and according to the NID DAT 2026 Exam Pattern and UCEED 2026 Exam Pattern by carefully analysis of NID: Previous years Sample Papers and UCEED: Previous years Question papers.

Although NID and UCEED have their own assessment criteria that evaluates students on different skills and abilities in design thinking and creativity, it has been found by students feedback over the years that UCEED is a little more intimidating and difficult to score. But recent years have found both the NID and UCEED exam to have similar difficulty levels as both focus on creative thinking and innovation with reasoning questions.

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Detailed Comparison Between NID and UCEED

Students are advised to go through and understand the exams according to the NID 2026 DAT Exam Syllabus and UCEED 2026 Exam Syllabus. For a detailed comparison between the NID and UCEED exam, questions from previous year papers were categorised for clear understanding for the following parameters:

  • Detailed Exam Structure

  • Skills Comparison

  • Difficulty Level Trends

  • Selection Format

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Topic-wise: NID and UCEED Question Paper Comparison

Students can refer to the table below to understand what different topics and questions are asked for different sections of the NID or UCEED exam:

Question Type

NID-GAT (General Aptitude Test)

UCEED (Part-A)

NID-DAT
(Sketching Based)

UCEED
(Part-B)

Numerical

Answer Type (NAT)

Rare/None

Prominently Asked (2023-25)

N/A

N/A

Multiple Select

Questions (MSQ)

Rare/None

Prominently Asked (2023-25)

N/A

N/A

Multiple Select

Questions (MSQ)

Highly Prominent

Prominently Asked (2023-25)

N/A

N/A

Drawing/Sketching

Frequently asked

Frequently asked

Frequently asked

Frequently asked

Creative

Writing/

Storytelling

Frequently asked

Rare/None

Present

Rare/None

Problem Solving

(Design Context)

Frequently asked

Frequently asked

Present

Present

Visual

Analysis/
Interpretation

Frequently asked

Frequently asked

Present

Present

3D

Visualization/
Form

Creation

Frequently asked

Asked

Present

Present

Students are also advised to go through these Articles:

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UCEED: Part A questions (NAT, MSQ, MCQ) often test for a variety of questions from Complex Visual Puzzles, Spatial Reasonings etc. testing fundamental concepts and quick thinking. The questions are detailed in nature where the visual problems and accuracy is required.

NID DAT: The GAT Section’s difficulty lies in the vast syllabus including analytical reasoning, General knowledge etc, providing open-ended creative challenges that required innovative thinking and strong visualization skills.

Skillset Comparison for Each Section: NID vs UCEED

Both NID and UCEED exams broadly test creative thinking with a potential for Problem Solving Mindset, but each of them have some specific skillset they are looking for in students in their evaluation process:

Skillset Required

NID-GAT (General Aptitude Test)

UCEED (Part-A)

NID-DAT
(Sketching Based)

UCEED
(Part-B)

Creativity

Moderate

Moderate

High

High

Drawing

Low

(Conceptual Level)

Low

(Conceptual Level)

High

High

Problem-Solving

High

(Logical/
Quantitative based)

High

(Logical/
Quantitative based)

High

(Logical/
Quantitative based)

High

(Logical/
Quantitative based)

Logical Reasoning

High

High

Moderate

Moderate

Visual Perception

High

High

High

High

General Awareness

High

Moderate

Low

Low

Quantitative Aptitude

High

High

Low

Low

Communication
Skills (Written)

Moderate

(Creative

Writing)

Low

High

(Explaining your design concept)

High (Reflection based to a given challenge)

Observation

Moderate

Moderate

High

High

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Difficulty Level and Trends for NID and UCEED Exams

Both the NID and UCEED exam possess a mix of easy, moderate, and difficult questions. However, the difficulty and assessment style may vary for which a detailed comparison as provided below:

Aspect

UCEED Exam

NID-DAT

Exam Structure

  • Part A: NAT, MSQ, MCQ – focuses on complex visual puzzles, spatial reasoning, logical deductions.

  • Part B: Drawing – subjective, requires observational skill, perspective, and composition.

  • GAT (General Aptitude Test): Broad coverage including general knowledge and analytical reasoning.

  • DAT (Design Aptitude Test): Subjective, open-ended creative challenges requiring innovative thinking and visualization.

Challenging Sections

  • The complexity of visual problems is evolving over time.

  • Precision required for NAT questions

  • High demand for quick thinking and grasp of concepts.

  • Drawing requires strong fundamentals in observation and composition.

  • The diversity of questions asked in GAT makes it challenging.

  • DAT requires originality, creativity, and visualization in overall approach.

  • It focuses on demonstrating design sensibility and problem-solving over “one correct answer.”

Exam Trends
Over Years

  • More focus on Drawing based reflection skills from 2024 onwards with 02 drawing based questions being asked in Part-B.

  • Mostly the pattern remained unchanged with core aptitude areas for better reframed questions and briefs.

Selection Format: NID vs UCEED

Below is the detailed comparison of exam structure for the NID and UCEED exams, for UCEED Part-A, it demands strategic management and accuracy. NID GAT may also have negative marking in specific cases only, but the DAT sections have more room for creative freedom .

Aspect

NID-DAT

UCEED

Paper

Structure (Prelims)


GAT (Objective)
DAT (Subjective).


Typically two parts:

Part A (objective - NAT,

MSQ, MCQ)


Part B (subjective -

drawing/design).

Duration

03 hours

3 hours (Part A: 2 hours, Part B: 1 hour)

Marking Scheme

Varies by section and question type.

Part A has negative marking for MCQs and

MSQs (partial marking for MSQs). Part BScheme

DAT has no negative marking.

Negative Marking

Generally, no negative marking

for DAT


Yes, for MCQs and incorrect/partially

correct MSQs in Part A.


NID emphasises on creativity and broader general awareness. It is ideal for aspirants with a vision for versatility in design, capable of addressing the diverse challenges. UCEED is suitable for the students with strong analytical problem solving skills, visual reasoning inclined to ways more technical and systematic aspects of the design. By carefully considering each exam with different factors like syllabus, questions types and marking, skills requirement and selection process, students can understand what exam they find tougher between NID and UCEED.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q: What are key differences between NID and UCEED exam?
A:

NID DAT focuses on open-ended questions, subjective evaluation, storytelling, conceptual-sketching and Problem-Solving through design thinking. Whereas, UCEED looks for objective formats testing the visual reasoning, logical deduction, and analytical precision.

Q: Ques: Do students find UCEED to be more difficult than the NID exam?
A:

According to the feedback from students in recent years, NID and UCEED exams have similar difficulty levels as both focus on creative thinking and innovation with reasoning questions.

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Questions related to UCEED

On Question asked by student community

Have a question related to UCEED ?

Hello,

Careers360 offers free UCEED Mock tests. You can access the mock test by this link : UCEED Mock Test 2026: Free Online Practice Test Series

Hope it helps !

Hello,

For admission to Ajeenkya D.Y. Patil University (ADYPU), you must score a minimum of 50% in your 12th grade for the general category. However, ADYPU conducts its own entrance exam, known as the ACET ADYPU Common Entrance Exam, which includes a studio test and a personal interview. So, you would have a chance for admission based on how well you score in the entrance exam.

Hope it helps!!!

If you’re looking for free courses for NID, NIFT, and UCEED preparation, that’s a great idea to get started without spending much. Many platforms offer free foundation and crash courses covering topics like design aptitude, logical reasoning, general awareness, and sketching. You can go through the link I’ll attach from Careers360, which provides free preparation material and courses for these exams. It will help you access mock tests, previous year papers, and video lectures to build a strong base for the entrance exams.
https://design.careers360.com/nift-nid-uceed-entrance-exam-free-crash-course

Hello,

NIFT 2026 admission - Applications release around November–December 2025.

UCEED 2026- Registrations open around September–October 2025.

Pearl Academy - They have multiple admission cycles (Jan, April, June). Applications usually open by October 2025 for Jan cycle.

Keep checking official sites regularly since dates shift slightly every year.

Thank you!