NID Prelims Cutoff 2026 (B.Des & M.Des), Check Expected & Previous Year Cutoff

NID Prelims Cutoff 2026 (B.Des & M.Des), Check Expected & Previous Year Cutoff

Ongoing Event

NID DAT Application Date:11 Sep' 25 - 01 Dec' 25

Sumeet SudarshanUpdated on 29 Oct 2025, 05:04 PM IST

The National Institute of Design will release the NID prelims 2026 cut-off on its official website - admissions.nid.edu. Only those candidates who clear the NID prelims cut-off will be eligible to appear for the NID mains. In the revised NID selection process, the marks obtained in NID prelims will not have any weightage in the final selection of the candidates. The NID prelims will be only a qualifying exam in NID DAT 2026. The number of candidates who will clear the NID prelims cut-off 2026 will be approximately 1.5 times the number of seats in the NID entrance exam. In this article, get complete details of the NID prelims 2026 cut-off, including previous year's cut-off trends.

This Story also Contains

  1. NID DAT Prelims 2026 Cutoff
  2. Previous year NID Prelims cutoff
  3. NID DAT B.Des Prelims Cutoff 2024
  4. NID DAT Reservation Criteria
  5. How Many Students Clear NID Prelims?
NID Prelims Cutoff 2026 (B.Des & M.Des), Check Expected & Previous Year Cutoff
nid dat prelims cutoff

Candidates who clear the NID prelims cut-off have to compulsorily attend the NID DAT mains to obtain seat allotment. NID conducts the NID Design Aptitude Test for admissions into B.Des and M.Des programmes offered by participating NID campuses in India.

NID DAT Prelims 2026 Cutoff

NID DAT prelims cutoff is different for all categories. The authorities release the NID DAT prelims cutoff in the form of rank and score. The revised selection process is expected to have an impact on the NID DAT prelims cutoff 2026. The table below provides the NID DAT 2026 prelims expected cutoff based on past year trends.

NID 2026 Prelims Expected Cut Off

Category

Marks of the last shortlisted for NID Mains/ NID prelims cut off

OPEN

56-60

OBC - NCL

40-44

EWS

48-52

ST

42-44

SC

27-30

PwD

8-10

Overseas

22-25

Previous year NID Prelims cutoff

Interested candidates can go through the NID prelims previous year cut-off in the tables below. It will help them understand the NID prelims cut-off trends and predict the cutoff.

NID DAT B.Des Prelims Cut-Off 2025

Category

Score of last candidate shortlisted NID Mains 2025

GENERAL

59

GEN-EWS46

OBC - NCL

51

SC

46

ST

38

Overseas

22.5

PwD

19

NID DAT B.Des Prelims Cutoff 2024

Category

Score of last candidate shortlisted

Rank of last shortlisted for NID Mains/ NID prelims cut off 2024

OPEN

58.50

253

OBC - NCL

43.00

153

EWS

50.00

257

ST

43.75

181

SC

29.00

120

PwD

9.75

62

Overseas

24.25

96

NID Cut off 2021 BDes prelims

Category

NID Score

NID Rank

General

64.00

375

General-EWS

40.25

155

OBC-NCL

52.50

323

SC

48.75

224

ST

13.50

125

PwD

18.50

43

Overseas

35.00

81

Also Check:

Pearl Academy B.Des Admissions 2026

No. 1 Design & Fashion Institute by ASSOCHAM, India Today, Outlook and The Week rankings

UPES B.Des Admissions 2026

Ranked #45 amongst Universities in India by NIRF | Ranked #1 in Academic Reputation in India by QS World University Rankings

NID M.Des prelims result 2021

Disciplines

NID Scores

Animation Film Design

60.00

Ceramic & Glass Design

54.50

Film & Video Communication

58.50

Furniture & Interior Design

65.50

Graphic Design

60.20

Product Design

61.00

Textile Design

57.50

Apparel Design

53.50

Lifestyle Accessory Design

61.50

New Media Design

54.00

Photography Design

47.00

Strategic Design Management

64.50

Toy & Game Design

58.50

Transportation & Automobile Design

57.00

Design for Retail Experience

59.00

Digital Game Design

58.50

Information Design

64.00

Interaction Design

61.00

Universal Design

60.50

NID DAT Reservation Criteria

Candidates can check the category-wise reservation of seats from the following table:

Programme

Institute

GEN-EWS (10%)

OBC-NCL(27%)

Scheduled Caste (15%)

Scheduled Tribe (7.5)%

B.DES.

NID Ahmedabad

13

34

19

9

GDPD

NID Andhra Pradesh

8

20

11

6

GDPD

NID Haryana

8

20

11

6

GDPD

NID Madhya Pradesh

8

20

11

6

GDPD

NID Assam

8

20

11

6

Top Design Entrance Exam

How Many Students Clear NID Prelims?

The National Institute of Design has notified in its admission handbook that approximately candidates numbering 1.5 times the number of seats will qualify for the NID mains. The scores they obtain in the NID prelims will not have any impact on the final NID cutoff. The table below provides the details about the candidates who were selected for NID B.Des mains in the previous year.

Total Number of Students Selected for NID DAT 2025 BDes Mains

Category

Rank From

Rank ToScore of the last candidate shortlisted

General

119359

General EWS

113446

OBC

120451

SC

117646

ST

111038

PWD

16719

Overseas

110622.5

You may also check:

NID DAT 2026 Full Study Material
Students preparing for NID 2026 can access this study material for both prelims and mains. Download now to strengthen your preparation and boost your chances of success.
Download EBook

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q: What is the weightage of NID prelims in the final selection process?
A:

As per the revised NID selection criteria, the NID prelims score will not have any weightage in the final selection process.

Q: What is a good score in NID?
A:

The good score for the NID DAT exam for the open category is 60-66.

Q: How many candidates clear NID prelims?
A:

Candidates numbering 1.5 times the number of seats will qualify the NID prelims.

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Questions related to NID DAT

On Question asked by student community

Have a question related to NID DAT ?

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)