Pearl Academy B.Des Admissions 2026
No. 1 Design & Fashion Institute by ASSOCHAM, India Today, Outlook and The Week rankings
NID DAT Application Date:11 Sep' 25 - 01 Dec' 25
Hello students, one of the most prominent design schools, the National Institute of Design, or NID, offers a national entrance exam called the Design Aptitude Test (DAT) to applicants for its design programs. Therefore, it is very important for aspiring candidates to prepare effectively in order to crack the NID DAT 2026. To better understand the NID entrance exam, students are advised to review and solve previous years question papers. Read the complete article to get NID previous years question Papers. The National Institute of Design has announced the NID DAT exam date to be conducted on 21st December, 2025.
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Aspiring students preparing for NID 2026 are highly advised by the experts to go through the previous years question papers in order to get an understanding of the exam pattern, types of questions and language of the paper to prepare better and score high in the NID exam. Students can get NID Previous Years question papers with solutions and approach for the questions from downloading the PDF given below:
NID Previous Year Question Papers with Solutions PDF |
As per the revised selection process , the NID DAT 2026 prelims result will not have any weightage in the final selection of candidates for B.Des and M.Des programmes. The NID 2026 prelims exam will be a qualifying exam to shortlist candidates for the mains exam. NID Mains exam will have 60% weightage for studio test and 40% weightage for in person interview for NID B.Des selection.
Students can get an overview of the changing trends over the last years in NID DAT exam to understand what is expected and how to create a more effective study plan according to the NID DAT 2026 Exam Syllabus below:
Weightage: The NID 2026 prelims exam will be a qualifying exam to shortlist candidates for the mains exam. NID Mains exam will have 60% weightage for studio test and 40% weightage for in person interview for NID B.Des selection.
Real world application based questions: With each gradual passing year the questions are becoming more contextual and application from the real-world challenges.
General Knowledge : NID Prelims even with only qualifying exams now is still very important to crack for students in order to get admission in NID. Therefore preparation for the GK section is important as more questions from the general knowledge section were in last year's question papers making it a scoring section.
User Centric questions in Part B: More questions are based on user centric approach for sketching sections making it important for students to prepare and develop problem solving skills.
Visual Reasoning: More questions have been seen in recent years in NID Prelims from visual reasoning sections and brands/logos related questions.
Lengthy: NID DAT Prelims question paper has been seen as a lengthy paper for students to complete in designated time over the years. Students are encouraged to prepare for NID Prelims as effectively as it is still an important stepstone in your NID Entrance journey.
Candidates should expect a continued emphasis on design and creative problem-solving, with less focus on traditional reasoning, making practice in creative skills and time management crucial for success. Students should focus on the General knowledge section and visual reasoning questions according to the NID DAT Exam Pattern for high scores in NID 2026 Prelims exam. Students are also advised to continue practice for sketching and product design exercises for better scores in NID Mains and NID prelims part-B section.
Aspiring students for NID 2026 exam can go through these NID Previous years questions with solutions to practice and understand the exam language and pattern to prepare and make study plan accordingly:
Ques: Ustad Bismillah khan is related to which instrument?
Ans: Shehnai
Ques: Full form of NITI Aayog?
Ans: National Institution for Transforming India
Ques: Why does a prism split white light into different colors?
Ans: A prism splits white light into different colors because of dispersion, where different wavelengths of light bend by different amounts when passing through the prism.
Ques: Which type of clay is Terracotta?
Ans: Terracotta is a type of earthenware clay that is porous and typically reddish-brown in color.
Ques: You are positioned in Delhi. If you travel to Bhopal and then Ahmedabad, What will be your direction of travel from bhopal towards ahmedabad?
Ans: West Direction 4.
Ques: The human eye understands lightness and darkness by using rods and distinguishes colors by use of cones. Which parts of the eye help to control the amount of light entering it?
Pupil
Retina
Eyelashes
Iris
Ans: Iris 5.
Ques: Demography is the statistical study of which of the following?
Ans: Population
Ques: We have to show three crucial activities of the process given below. (20 marks)
Potato to chips
Bees to candles
Mangoes to pickle
Seashell to jewellery
EXAMS dates- 13-14 Dec | Leading Design College | Highest CTC: ₹12 LPA | Average CTC: ₹7.5 LPA | Scholarships for Deserving Students
India's youngest NAAC A++ accredited University | NIRF rank band 151-200 | 2200 Recruiters | 45.98 Lakhs Highest Package
Ans: 
Ques: Draw and explain briefly 4 creative uses of Sellotape. (10 Marks)

Solution


Students may also check:
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Solving NID previous years papers helps candidates understand the structure of the NID DAT exam including the distribution of objective and subjective questions, and helps prepare accordingly.
Questions were asked from topics including General Knowledge, Reasoning, Sustainable Development etc for NID Part-A Prelims question paper.
As per the revised selection process, the NID DAT 2026 prelims result will not have any weightage in the final selection of candidates for B.Des and M.Des programmes. The NID 2026 prelims exam will be a qualifying exam to shortlist candidates for the mains exam.
On Question asked by student community
You can get the NIT DAT SYLLABUS, updated version from careers 360 in detail from careers 360 article. Follow the link given from The link of the syllabus article is given below from careers 360
https://design.careers360.com/articles/nid-dat-syllabus-2026
Yes you are eligible to appear for NID DAT for the M.Des programme. Since you are in final make sure you will have completed your BA by the required deadline. Also go through the specific specializations you want to apply for, some may require certain specific backgrounds to be eligible to apply for them. You can find more details here design.careers360.com/articles/nid-dat-eligibility-criteria
Hello,
To prepare for M.des exams like CEED or NID DAT, here are some points which you can follow:
Understand the pattern – focus on creativity, design aptitude, and problem-solving.
Practice sketching daily and improve visualization.
Study basics of color, form, and design concepts.
Solve previous papers and build a strong portfolio.
Stay consistent and observe everyday designs for new ideas.
THANKU.
Hi daksh
As 563 rank in nid dat exam cannot guarantee admission in designing college but it could be a good chance to explore some campus as if you are not from general category as category role plays an important role . But now you can do one thing focus on your strengthening your protofile or preparing for the studio test (bdes) or interview (mdes).
Thanks.
No, IPU (Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University) does not accept NID DAT Prelims score for admission to the B.Des (Bachelor of Design) program.
Instead, IPU conducts its own entrance test or may consider CUET (UG) scores for B.Des admissions, depending on the latest admission guidelines. Always refer to the university's official prospectus for the year you're applying to for the final admission criteria.
NIT DAT (https://www.shiksha.com/design/articles/nid-admissions-2025-colleges-accepting-nid-entrance-exam-scores-for-bdes-mdes-courses-blogId-13097)
Ranked 2nd in the IIRF 2023 Design School Ranking | Approved by AICTE | Highest CTC 13 LPA
Ranked amongst top 3% universities globally (QS Rankings)
No. 1 Design & Fashion Institute by ASSOCHAM, India Today, Outlook and The Week rankings
EXAMS dates- 13-14 Dec | Leading Design College | Highest CTC: ₹12 LPA | Average CTC: ₹7.5 LPA | Scholarships for Deserving Students
Courses offered in- Fashion Design, Product Design, Communication Design, Interior & Spatial Design & Animation & VFX Design
Ranked #45 amongst Universities in India by NIRF | Ranked #1 in Academic Reputation in India by QS World University Rankings