The NID (National Institute of Design) Entrance Exam has two parts, the NID DAT (Design Ability Test) Prelims and NID DAT Mains. NID doesn’t specify any syllabus for its exam. But the DAT Prelims is divided into 2 sections. One is the aptitude portion which is all MCQs and the other is the drawing portion. The DAT Mains is studio tests and personal interviews. Only those people make it to the DAT Mains who qualify the prelims.

The exam is conducted to find out the level of creativity a student has. Their ability to think unique, out of the box. Their problem-solving skills, visualization and many more. They take the test to make sure that the students they select can burst the imagination-o-meter. Having an out of the world imagination is like a must have for any designer. More than the skill set, this thinking process should be your differentiating factor. It’s what is going to help you in the long run as well.

Let’s talk about the way they grade you. Or what we’ve observed from past papers. After decoding their tactics, we’ve come to know that questions which ask you to illustrate something or complete something are asked often. For example, a question like, ‘Draw how this room would look like to a bird sitting on top of the curtain rod.’ These sorts of things are asked to check your spatial ability and visualization skills.

Also, your observation plays a major role here. The more you’ve sat around and stared at things the more you’ll be able to remember and sketch out.

If you want to ace this exam, here are a few things you can start off with. Carry a sketchbook everywhere and draw what you see. This will help you observe and also improve your skills set the same time. Drawing is necessary not only for the exam but also for a designer’s entire career. It’s the language of design after all.

Or if you want, you could go by a more structured approach to learning drawing. You could tackle organic drawing and analytical drawing separately. Now what are these?

1. Analytical Drawing

This is all the geometric drawing. It involves drawing all the non-living man-made things. Very mathematical. Things like product sketching, automobile sketching, yada yada. To get started in this domain of drawing; you can draw some lines, circles and ellipses, freehand on a sheet of paper. Practice this regularly.

2. Organic Drawing

This domain of drawing is very organic. I mean, obviously that’s the name. But what I mean is, it doesn’t involve any geometric shapes. On the face of it, that is. You draw things like nature, humans, animals etc. The base of all this, is the basic shapes though. So, in some way, those shapes do come around.

After doing all this you come to making scenarios, which are a merger of these two.

So, let’s get to the itty-bitty surprise we’ve got for you all. Although NID doesn’t provide a determined syllabus for their entrance exam, we’ve done the deed and made one for you. We analyzed previous years papers and came up with the following categories.

1. Design Aptitude

Fundamentals of Visual Art – this part includes the elements of design. You have to study the visual elements (i.e., shape form, texture, space, color) and the visual principals like the gestalt’s Laws. After all this you get to making compositions.

Communication design – This portion has all the things you would do as a communication designer; poster design, typography, character design, storytelling and storyboarding, animation, logo/mascot design, icon design, book covers, instruction sheets etc.

Product Design and Analysis- This part is a product jungle. You have to learn to representation of products (i.e., the multiple views like exploded view, objects in perspective) manipulation and scaling, the multiple uses and problem-solving approaches.

Games and Puzzles-Questions are asked based upon various games like chess, tangram, rebus puzzle, jigsaw puzzle, spotting differences and doodling.

Observation and Design Awareness- This is all about your general awareness of things like art, architecture, famous personalities, current affairs, photography and Indian culture.

2. Drawing Skills

Product Drawing – This type of drawing is all about shapes. Then we get to construction of 3d forms using those shapes. It’s basically drawing all manmade objects.

Organic Drawing- This is looser. It’s all the natural forms. Animals, humans, birds, plants etc.

Perspective Drawing- 1-point, 2-point, 3-point, fish eye and multiple perspectives.

Light and Shadow- Drawing and understanding natural and artificial lighting. Organic and manmade textures.

Composition and Scenarios – This involves merging all the things you’ve learnt above.

Calligraphy and Typography –The art of letters and world of typefaces

3. Spatial Ability

Spatial and Mechanical- your ability to understand spaces/forms/objects and visualize them. You’ll be learning things like hidden figures, spatial analysis, blocks cutting and joining, figure and symbol counting etc.

Yep, so that was the juicy information we had for you all. Now now, there there, don’t get emotional you can always thank us from within your hearts. That’s all we ever want anyways. Now, go pick up a sketchbook and get started, you’ve got an exam to crack!

For more information about the NID exam visit their website: https://www.nid.edu/home

What is the NID Entrance exam syllabus?

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