The National Institute of Design has opened the NID DAT 2026 application form on September 11, 2025. Candidates can complete NID DAT 2026 registration online on the official website - admissions.nid.edu. The deadline to apply is December 1, 2025 as per the NID 2026 schedule notified in the NID 2026 notification. Applicants need to check the NID DAT 2026 eligibility criteria before proceeding to fill the application form. Also, the applicants must pay the NID DAT application fee online based on their category. The NID DAT entrance exam date for Prelims is December 21, 2025.
NID DAT 2026 will consist of NID DAT prelims and NID DAT mains. Candidates who are shortlisted in the NID DAT 2026 Prelims will be eligible to appear for NID DAT mains. The final NID admissions will be done based on the candidate's score in the mains exam as per the revised NID selection process. Through the NID entrance exam, candidates will be offered admission into B.Des and M.Des programmes of the 7 NID colleges, namely NID Ahmedabad, NID Bangalore, NID Gandhinagar, NID Andhra Pradesh, NID Haryana, NID Madhya Pradesh, and NID Assam.
In the NID counselling process, candidates are offered seats based on their campus preference and in the merit order category-wise, and as per the seat availability. The NID counselling 2026 includes the registration process, followed by submission of campus and course preferences, document verification, and payment of the admission fee.
What is NID DAT Entrance Exam?
The NID Design Aptitude Test (DAT) exam is a national-level exam conducted by the National Institute of Design. The NID entrance exam 2026 serves as a gateway for students aspiring to pursue a career in UG and PG design programmes. NID offers various undergraduate and postgraduate programmes such as Bachelor of Design (BDes) and Master of Design (M.Des.). As to the question "How many attempts are there for NID DAT in a year?", candidates can note that they will be able to attempt NID DAT only once in a year.
NID offers B.Des and M.Des programs with a duration of 4 years and 2.5 years, respectively. NID DAT B.Des prelims exam is conducted as a pen-and-paper-based test. The NID DAT question paper is in the English language only. The main objective of the NID DAT exam is to assess the candidate's knowledge, skills, and behavioral abilities. The B.Des programme is offered by NID Ahmedabad, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Assam. The M.Des programme is offered only by the Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, and Bengaluru campuses.
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