Design Careers Entrance Exam has come up a notch in this decade, where numerous candidates are aspiring to take up creative careers.
India’s design education holds a great strength due to its historical culture. There are various universities and institutions that are known for producing the best and most creative minds in the field. This ensures that students and professionals get the best possible training.
Many professionals and students do not have the necessary information about the design colleges in India. Hence, the article takes you through the 5 best design careers entrance exam you must prepare for!
Opportunities & career scope after the Design Careers Exams
After you crack the Design Careers Entrance Exam, and then a degree in designing, you can work in various fields such as fashion, animation, and e-commerce. One of the most popular job titles in this field is that of a fashion designer.
The design program allows you to be independent and create a career for yourself in the fashion industry. It also provides you with the necessary skills to be successful in this field with internships, workshops, and industry exposure.
National Institute of Fashion Technology – NIFT
When we are discussing the Design Careers Entrance Exam, NIFT is the pioneer and premier institute that we must name.
The National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) is a leading organization that conducts an entrance exam for aspiring designers. Established in 1986, NIFT is regarded as the foremost organization that provides professional human resources to the textile and apparel industry.
In 2006, it was officially recognized as a legal institution by the Law of India. It has over 20 campuses across the country and is also known for providing knowledge services to state governments and unions.
The exam is usually conducted in January and February. After securing the NIFT entrance exam, candidates can start working in various design programs such as the Master of Design (MD), Bachelor of Design (B.Des), and the Fashion Technology (MFTech).
Now, let us discuss what it takes to crack the NIFT Design Careers entrance exam.
NIFT Eligibility Criteria
- Candidates must have passed a recognized board/10+2 institute’s (intermediate) or equivalent exam.
- Those appearing for board/10+2 institute’s (intermediate) or equivalent exam are also entitled to apply as well.
- Applicants must have passed or be taking the SSC test (10+2) with five subjects from the National Open School.
- Those with a three-year diploma are allowed to apply.
- The candidate’s age should not exceed 23.
- According to the rules, reserved category candidates receive a five-year relaxation.
NIFT Exam Pattern
The NIFT entrance exam is conducted in three phases: General Ability Test, Creative Ability Test, and NIFT Situation Test. Students who clear the NIFT CAT and GAT exam appear for the NIFT Situation Test.
NIFT Phase 1 Exam
- NIFT CAT Exam
- NIFT GAT Exam
NIFT CAT Exam
The Creative Ability Test is a type of test that measures the candidate’s ability to create and design ideas. It was created to evaluate the candidate’s ability to interpret and visualize visual ideas.
The preparation for the NIFT CAT exam begins with the first paper. This is a 3-hour long paper that consists of questions that are subjective. It has a maximum of 150 marks and is designed to introduce the concepts of NIFT. Aside from this, the paper also has an extensive syllabus to cover all the topics and thus has a 50% weightage of the NIFT entrance exam.
NIFT GAT Exam
The NIFT GAT exam consists of five sections that deal with various aspects of industry and society. It is conducted in two hours for 100 marks. The NIFT GAT paper is an objective-based paper. It has negative markings and questions. NIFT GAT has a 30% weightage of the NIFT entrance exam.
- Quantitative Ability
- Communication Ability and English Comprehension
- Analytical and Logical Ability
- General Knowledge and Current Affairs
- Case Study
The common and the case study sub-sections follow the same syllabus as NIFT 2022. The case study section tests the managerial skills of candidates by analyzing and providing solutions to the questions based on an industry environment.
NIFT Phase 2 Exam
NIFT Situation Test
The situation test is conducted for the candidates who are expected to appear for the B. Des examination. It is a hands-on test that aims to evaluate the candidate’s skills in handling and developing innovative ideas in a given set of materials. This test is helpful in assessing the candidate’s creativity. It carries 20% of the NIFT entrance exam weightage.
The objective of the NIFT Situation test is to evaluate the candidate’s creativity and space visualization skills. In addition, the candidate’s use of the given materials is evaluated from anyone’s question they choose from the three options. Aside from the technical aspects of the project, the candidate’s creativity is also evaluated through the various elements that he or she added to the model.
The candidates are required to write an introduction to the model and a write-up describing the concept and ideas of the model. The write-up is checked on the given parameters which are not more than 100 words summary of the 3D model.
The next highly competitive Design Careers Entrance Exam is the UCEED
Undergraduate Common Entrance Exam for Design – UCEED
The UCEED is commonly referred to as the Undergraduate Common Entrance Exam for Design. It is conducted by IIT Bombay for the admission of students to the Bachelor of Design program. The qualified candidates can easily secure admission to the participating institutes.
UCEED Eligibility Criteria
Criterion 1 –Qualifying Examination:
All students who are aspiring to study in various universities should have either passed the qualifying examination or appeared in the year when they were first enrolled. Those who appeared for the exam in 2016 or earlier are not eligible.
Criterion 2 – Age limit:
The candidate should be born on or after October 1, 2002. If they are from the Other Backward Class (OBC-NCL) or Open category, they should be 18 years old by October 1, 1996.
Criterion 3 – Number of Attempts:
For the UCEED, a candidate can try it twice in a row and again in consecutive years. Also, its score can be used for the same purpose only for the academic year that begins in the following year.
UCEED Exam Pattern
Exam Pattern for PART A of the UCEED
Candidates can review the exam pattern for PART A: Undergraduate Common Entrance Exam for Design in the sections below.
Total marks – 240.
Time limit: 150 minutes (two and a half hours). It is a computer-based test.
UCEED PART A is divided into three portions, as follows:
SECTION 1-Â (Numerical Answer Type)
- 18 questions (4 marks each; no negative marks).
- A response to the questions is a number that must be typed into a virtual keyboard on the computer screen.
- For these questions, no options are given.
- Questions that are not attempted receive zero points.
MSQ SECTION 2 (Multiple Select Questions)
- 18 questions (4 marks each; 0.19 negative marks).
- A response to these questions is a number that must be typed into a virtual keyboard on the computer screen.
- For these questions, no options are given.
- Questions that are not attempted will receive zero points.
MCQ SECTION 3 (Multiple Choice Questions)
- 32 inquiries (3 marks each; 0.71 negative marks).
- Each MCQ contains four possible answers, but only one is correct.
PART B UCEED Exam Pattern
The following is the detailed UCEED 2020 Exam Pattern for PART B:
Total Marks: 60
Time limit: 30 minutes (half an hour).
- Count of Questions: It comprises one question that will require subjective judgment to assess drawing ability.
- The questions are displayed on the computer screen, and the answer must be entered or drawn in the invigilator’s answer book.
- At the conclusion of the examination, the answer booklets are collected.
- This is a required question. The candidates are ineligible for admission if the application is not completed or submitted on time.
- PART B does not have any negative marking.
National Institute of Design – NID
Now, the next popular Design Careers Entrance Exam is the NID. The National Institute of Design (NID) Design Aptitude Test (DAT) is a two-tier entrance exam that is conducted every year for students who are interested in pursuing studies in the field of design. The main exam is conducted to determine which students are accepted into the institute’s B. Des or M. Des programs.
NID Eligibility Criteria
Criterion 1 – Age Limit
The upper age limit for students pursuing B. Des programs is 20 years for general and international applicants, while the limit for those belonging to the SC/ST, PwD, and OEC categories is 25 years. For M. Des students, the upper limit is 30 years for general and overseas students, while the limit for those belonging to the SC/ST, PwD, and OEC categories is 35 years.
Criterion 2 – Educational Qualification
Des applicants are required to have either passed the 12th grade or an equivalent examination, and they should have at least a bachelor’s degree from a recognized university.
NID Exam Pattern
The NID DAT exam pattern consists of three phases: the preliminary, mains, and studio tests. It offers a total of 70 marks for objective questions and 30 marks for subjective ones. The updated version of the exam also comes with a new syllabus for the various courses that are offered through the NID DAT.
- Design Aptitude Test – Prelims
- Design Aptitude Test – Mains
Design Aptitude Test – Prelims
The NID DAT Prelims for the BDes/GDPD course are divided into two parts. The first one consists of 22 objective-type questions while the second one consists of 4 subjective ones. The weightage of the first and second parts of the NID DAT Prelims exam is set at 30 and 70 marks, respectively. The marking scheme for these exams varies each year. It has 70% of the exam weightage.
Design Aptitude Test – Mains
The NID DAT Mains is a written test that usually consists of a Studio Test and a Personal Interview round. Due to the COVID-19, the test is being conducted as an online exam. It has 30% of the exam weightage.
NID Studio Test: As part of the NID DAT Mains, candidates were required to appear for a studio test before they can take part in the personal interview round. The studio test will feature multiple questions that are used to evaluate candidates’ abilities.
Personal Interview: The interview round for admission to various universities is conducted separately for each specialization.
Pearl Academy
Pearl Academy comes next when we are discussing the Design Careers Entrance Exam. Pearl Institute’s entrance test is conducted online. It is ranked as one of the top fashion colleges in India according to a survey conducted by India Today in 2017. The institute also offers various innovative courses, such as B.Des in fashion and technology and UI/UX design. These are not offered by other institutions.
Pearl Academy Eligibility Criteria
The Pearl Academy of Fashion conducts entrance exams for its various programs across its campuses in Delhi NCR East, Bengaluru, Jaipur, and Mumbai. The eligibility criteria for these programs are as follows.
- For 3 or 4 year UG programme – 10+2 pass in any discipline
- For 2 year postgraduate course or 11 month postgraduate programme – Graduate from a recognised university in any discipline.
- Professional Program for 11 Months – 10+2 or equivalent
- Provisional admission is available to candidates who are taking their qualifying examination.
Pearl Academy Exam Pattern
To secure admission into the programs offered by Pearl Academy, candidates need to appear for the entrance exam, which is also called Pearl Academy Entrance Exam. They will then be interviewed during a personal interview round. The entrance exam for the Pearl Academy of Fashion is conducted in multiple cycles. It is divided into two parts.
Stage 1 – The first stage involves candidates appearing for a written examination at the respective test centers. The two sections of the exam are the General Performance Test (GPT) and the Design Aptitude Test (DAT). The latter tests the candidate’s ability to design, visualize and communicate effectively. The former comprises various categories such as quantitative ability, data interpretation, and logical reasoning.
Stage 2 – After the written exam, candidates are invited to participate in a personal interview. They then have to pass a material handling skills test in order to gain entry into the design stream.
Common Entrance Exam for Design – CEED
The Common Entrance Exam for Design (CEED) for admission to various postgraduate programs is conducted by the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay.
Individuals who score well in the CEED exam can secure admission in the M.Des course at various IITs, including IIT Bombay, IIT Delhi, IIT Guwahati, IIT Hyderabad, IIIT Kanpur, UPES Dehradun, and IIT Hyderabad. Ph.D. programs are also available at these institutions.
The objective of the CEED is to evaluate the candidate’s ability to develop design-based thinking. It also aims to identify areas of interest in the candidate’s field of expertise.
CEED Eligibility Criteria
Although the CEED entrance exam’s eligibility criteria are the same for both private and public schools, the requirements for admission to different institutions may vary.
- The basic eligibility criteria for the CEED exam is a graduate’s degree with a minimum of 10+2 and a higher education qualification such as a 3-year degree. However, all the listed IITs and IISC have their own eligibility criteria.
- The age limit for the CEED entrance exam does not apply. As long as they meet the necessary requirements, candidates can appear for the exam multiple times.
CEED Exam Pattern
The CEED exam is conducted in two parts. Both paper A and B are conducted for one hour each. Part-A and Part-B. In both parts, candidates are evaluated on a scale of 1 to 100. The questions are written in English and are mainly objective-type.
The main objective of the CEED exam is to identify students who are likely to perform well in the upcoming competitive examinations. Only those who have secured the necessary marks in Part-A are considered for the next round of the exam.
CEED Exam Part A
The CEED Part A has 41 objective multiple-choice questions. In this section, candidates are asked about various topics such as spatial and visual awareness, environmental awareness, and logical reasoning. They are able to attempt the exam on a computer for about an hour.
CEED Exam Part B
The CEED paper consists of various questions that are designed to test an individual’s drawing and writing skills. The invigilator will provide a booklet with an answer that candidates can use to solve the questions. The five questions in Part B are timed and require candidates to attempt to solve them in about two hours.
The objective of the exam is to evaluate candidates on their level of performance. In 2020, candidates had the option of choosing one of the five questions. However, in 2021, candidates had to attempt all of the questions, which have a weightage of 20 marks each.
The marking scheme for the CEED exam varies depending on the paper’s Part A and B. In Part A, there is negative marking MSQ (-0.2) and MCQ (-0.5) for each wrong answer, but in Part B, there is no negative marking.
*The above is a list for your reference in random order. You may select the exam and college as per your interests and subjects available.
Design Careers Entrance Exam – Preparation
So, when it comes to Design Careers Entrance Exam preparation, you might have a to select your college or course, and then just click the below links for the preparation process as per your selection:
AFA Prepares you for the Design Careers Entrance Exam
Many students choose to prepare for design careers entrance exam. According to experts, one needs to have the necessary natural flair to assess the trends in the field and learn about its various elements. In addition, individuals can also pursue various course specializations in the discipline to enhance their skills and explore their natural talents.
To prepare for any of the mentioned design careers entrance exam vary but can be done within six months of tenure. This article aims to guide students through the 5 best design careers entrance exam that are available for aspiring designers. So, if you are an aspiring designer, start your preparation today with the Academy of Fashion and Art to get started to get into your dream institute and build the career of your choice.