If you want to study design, NIFTs are widely regarded as the best design colleges in the country. Check out the list of top NIFT colleges in India, their admission process and more here.
- NIFT Highlights
- List of Top NIFT Colleges in India
- Top Design Colleges in India - India Today Rankings
- Top Design Colleges in India - Outlook and The Week …
- NIFT Colleges in India: Courses Offered
- NIFT Eligibility Criteria
- NIFT Admission Process
- NIFT Cutoffs
- NIFT Fee Structure 2023
- All About NIFT Entrance Exam 2023
- NIFT Entrance Exam 2023
- Career Scope After NIFT
- Other Top Design Colleges in India
- Faqs

NIFT Colleges in India: NIFTs are widely regarded as the country's best design schools. There are currently 18 operational NIFTs in the nation, with the first one being established in New Delhi in 1986. NIFT Panchkula and NIFT Varanasi are the most recent additions to the ranking of top NIFT Colleges in India. The list of NIFT colleges accepting NIFT entrance exam scores for admission now includes NIFT Panchkula as of 2023. It is important to note that NIFT Varanasi does not administer the NIFT 2023 entrance exam and only offers short-term courses. There are 17 NIFTs in India that offer B Des, B FTech, M Des, M FTech and MFM. programmes.
NIFTs are some of the best fashion design institutes in the country, offering a fantastic start in the design field. Candidates interested in design courses can read the detailed article below to learn everything there is to know about top NIFT Colleges in India and the admissions process.
Also Read: NID DAT Vs NIFT
NIFT Highlights
The following are the highlights of the NIFT Entrance Exam 2023:Full Exam Name | National Institute of Fashion Technology Entrance Examination |
Short Exam Name | NIFT Entrance Exam |
Conducting Body | National Institute of Fashion Technology |
Frequency of Conduct | Once a year |
Exam Level | National Level Exam |
Languages | English |
Mode of Application | Online |
Application Fee (General) | INR 3000 [Offline] |
Mode of Exam | Online |
Mode of Counselling | Online |
Participating Colleges | 21 |
Number of Seats | 4517 Seats |
Also Read: Online Courses Offered by NIFT
List of Top NIFT Colleges in India
Several fashion colleges in India accept admission based on one's NIFT Entrance Exam score. Here is a complete list of Top NIFT Colleges in India:• NIFT New Delhi
• NIFT Navi Mumbai
• NIFT Bengaluru
• NIFT Chennai
• NIFT Kolkata
• NIFT Hyderabad
• NIFT Patna
• NIFT Bhopal
• NIFT Kannur (Kerala)
• NIFT Gandhinagar
• NIFT Jodhpur
• NIFT Bhubaneswar
• NIFT Raebareli (Uttar Pradesh)
• NIFT Shillong
• NIFT Srinagar
• NIFT Kangra (Himachal Pradesh)
Top Design Colleges in India - India Today Rankings
India Today and Outlook both publish rankings for top design colleges in India. According to India Today's ranking, eight NIFTs will be among the top 10 fashion design colleges in India in 2022. The following is a list of NIFTs in India:
Name of the Institute | India Today 2021 Ranking | India Today 2022 Ranking |
NIFT Delhi | 1 | 1 |
NIFT Mumbai | 2 | 2 |
NIFT Bangalore | 3 | 3 |
NIFT Chennai | 4 | 4 |
NIFT Gandhinagar | 6 | 5 |
NIFT Patna | 5 | 6 |
NIFT Hyderabad | 7 | 7 |
NIFT Kolkota | 8 | 8 |
Pearl Academy New Delhi | 9 | 9 |
Symbiosis Institute of Design (SID), Pune | 10 | 10 |
NIFT Raebareli | 11 | 11 |
Army Institute of Fashion and Design | 13 | 12 |
NIFT Kannur | - | 13 |
NIFT Shillong | 12 | 14 |
NIFT Bhubaneswar | - | 15 |
Pearl Academy Jaipur | 14 | 16 |
NIFT Kangra | 16 | 17 |
JD Institute of Fashion Technology | 17 | 18 |
Amity Institute of Fashion Technology, Noida | 15 | 19 |
NIFT TEA | 18 | 20 |
Vogue Institute of Art and Design | 23 | 22 |
MKSSSs School of Fashion Technology Pune | 19 | 23 |
Pearl Academy Mumbai | 24 | 24 |
Amity School of Fashion Technology, Lucknow | 28 | 25 |
Fashion and Apparel Design, T.John College | 22 | 26 |
PSG College of Arts and Science | 27 | 27 |
IMS Design and Innovation Academy | 25 | 28 |
Whistling Woods International, Mumbai | 26 | 29 |
Department of Fashion Technology, Sona College of Technology, Salem | - | 30 |
BBK DAV College for Women, Amritsar | - | 31 |
J.D.Birla Institute, Kolkota | - | 32 |
Nehru Arts and Science College, Comibatore | - | 33 |
Rathinam College of Arts and Science, Coimbatore | - | 34 |
The Oxford College of Science, Bengaluru | - | 35 |
Kanya Maha Vidyalaya, Jalandhar | - | 36 |
Hindusthan College of Arts & Science, Coimbatore | - | 37 |
Dr.N.G.P Arts and Science College, Coimbatore | - | 38 |
Sri Krishna Arts and Science College, Coimbatore | - | 39 |
Bishop Appasamy College of Arts and Science, Coimbatore | - | 40 |
Bon Secours College of Women, Thanjavur | - | 41 |
Department of Fashion and Textiles IIS, Jaipur | - | 42 |
Hans Raj Mahila Maha Vidyalaya, Jalandhar | - | 43 |
Dr. SNS Rajalakshmi College of Arts and Science, Coimbatore | - | 44 |
Department of Costume Design & Fashion Kongu Arts and Science College, Erode | - | 45 |
IIFT College of Fashion, Bengaluru | - | 46 |
Department of Fashion Designing Sardar Patel Mahavidyalaya Chandrapur, Chandrapur | - | 47 |
School of Design JECRC University, Jaipur | - | 48 |
K.S.R. College of Arts and Science for Women, Namakkal | - | 49 |
Apeejay College of Fine Arts, Jalandhar | 20 | - |
Manipal School of Architecture and Planning | 21 | - |
Axis Institute of Fashion Technology | 29 | - |
North India Institute of Fashion Technology | 30 | - |
Top Design Colleges in India - Outlook and The Week Rankings
The following is a list of the top design colleges in India as ranked by Outlook and The Week:Name of the Institute | Rankings | |
The Week 2020 | Outlook 2019 | |
NIFT Delhi | 1 | 2 |
NIFT Mumbai | - | 1 |
NIFT Bangalore | 2 | 4 |
NIFT Chennai | 3 | 5 |
NIFT Patna | 6 | 8 |
NIFT Gandhinagar | 4 | - |
NIFT Hyderabad | 5 | 7 |
NIFT Kolkota | 7 | 6 |
Pearl Academy New Delhi | 8 | 3 |
Symbiosis Institute of Design (SID), Pune | - | 20 |
NIFT Raebareli | - | - |
NIFT Shillong | 9 | - |
Army Institute of Fashion and Design | 11 | 14 |
Pearl Academy Jaipur | - | - |
Amity Institute of Fashion Technology, Noida | - | 15 |
NIFT Kangra | - | - |
JD Institute of Fashion Technology | 14 | - |
NIFT TEA | - | 10 |
MKSSSs School of Fashion Technology Pune | - | - |
Apeejay College of Fine Arts, Jalandhar | - | - |
Manipal School of Architecture and Planning | 13 | - |
Fashion and Apparel Design, T.John College | - | 17 |
Vogue Institute of Art and Design | - | 22 |
Pearl Academy Mumbai | - | 25 |
IMS Design and Innovation Academy | 15 | 24 |
Whistling Woods International, Mumbai | - | - |
PSG College of Arts and Science | - | - |
Amity School of Fashion Technology, Lucknow | 16 | 19 |
Axis Institute of Fashion Technology | - | - |
North India Institute of Fashion Technology | - | 9 |
NIFT Colleges in India: Courses Offered
Given below is the list of NIFT colleges in India along with the UG & PG colleges:
Name of the Institute | Bachelor Courses | Master Courses |
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NIFT Panchkula |
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NIFT Bhubaneswar |
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NIFT Raebareli |
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NIFT Srinagar |
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Also Read: Important Topics for NIFT Entrance Exam Preparation
NIFT Eligibility Criteria
Candidates who are interested in pursuing courses from NIFT can take a look at the bachelor's and master's courses at NIFT.
National Institute of Fashion Technology Bachelor's Courses Eligibility
In order to apply for the B Des courses and B F Tech courses, candidates must have secured at least 60% marks in class 12.
NIFT also conducts the Creative Ability Test (CAT) for students seeking admission in bachelor’s courses. Students are selected for the NIFT Situation Test on the basis of NIFT CAT scores.
The NIFT situation test will test the student’s creativity, ability to visualize, composition and construction skills. Time management skills are also tested through this test.
Final admission is done on the basis of NIFT CAT, academic background and 20% weightage is given to the NIFT situation test.
National Institute of Fashion Technology Master's Courses Eligibility
Candidates must have pursued B.Des of B.F.Tech with at least 60% marks in order to apply for the master’s courses offered by NIFT.
Admissions are done on the basis of the NIFT GAT (Graduate Ability Test) score. The exam is conducted by the institute every year.
Students shortlisted on the basis of NIFT GAT are called for group discussion and personal interviews. All the components are considered to shortlist students for the master’s programme.
NIFT Admission Process
Admission to all NIFT campuses is based on the marks obtained in the NIFT Entrance Exam. The admission process for BDes and MDes courses at NIFT is a three-tiered process consisting of two written tests and a situation test/GD-PI round, whereas applicants for other courses must take a single written test. The following table summarises the NIFT admission process for all courses, as well as the weightage assigned to each test:
Courses | Test | Weightage |
BDes | CAT | 50% |
GAT | 30% | |
Situation Test | 20% | |
MDes | CAT | 40% |
GAT | 30% | |
GD/PI | 30% | |
BFTech | GAT | 100% |
MFTech | GAT | 70% |
GD/PI | 30% | |
MFM | GAT | 70% |
GD/PI | 30% |
NIFT Cutoffs
Applicants seeking admission to NIFT campuses must obtain NIFT cutoffs, which will be available at the end of May 2023. To gain admission to NIFT campuses, aspirants must meet the minimum qualifying criteria. The NIFT 2023 cutoff will be published on the institute's official website, nift.ac.in.
NIFT Fee Structure 2023
Every semester, applicants must pay the NIFT fee for the course(s) they have applied for admission to. All NIFT UG courses have eight semesters, whereas PG courses have four semesters, aspirants are informed. For both undergraduate and graduate programmes at all NIFT campuses, non-NRI candidates must pay the same tuition fee. The fee that candidates must pay for the entire course is listed in the table below.
Course | Category | Fee |
UG course fee for all campuses | Non-NRI | INR 12,77,700 |
PG course fee for all campuses | Non-NRI | INR 6,21,200 |
#UG course fee | NRI | INR 39,27,700 |
#PG course fee | NRI | INR 18,82,200 |
*UG course fee | NRI | INR 27,64,000 |
*PG course fee | NRI | INR 13,28,400 |
#Fees are payable at the NIFT campuses in Bengaluru, Chennai, Gandhinagar, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, New Delhi, Raebareli, and Srinagar. *Fees are payable at NIFT campuses in Panchkula, Patna, Kangra, Bhopal, Kannur, Shillong, Jodhpur, and Bhubaneswar. |
All About NIFT Entrance Exam 2023
NIFT conducts a design entrance exam, known as NIFT Entrance Exam 2023 for admission to B Des and M.Des courses include two different tests- NIFT General Ability Test (GAT) and NIFT Creative Ability Test (CAT). Candidates who qualify NIFT GAT and CAT are eligible to appear for final admission rounds of NIFT such as personal interview and situation test. After this round, candidates are shortlisted for admissions. Find out everything about the NIFT Entrance Exam from the table below.
NIFT Entrance Exam 2023
The National Institute of Fashion Technology administers the NIFT entrance exam for admission to NIFT campuses for B.Des, BF.Tech, M.Des, MFM, and MFTech programmes. NIFT 2023 will be held in 5th February 2023 in an Online-Remote Proctored mode. The NIFT entrance exam 2023 for BDes, BFTech, MFTech, and MFM will begin at 10 a.m., and MDes will begin at 2.30 p.m., according to the schedule.
Also Read: What’s Next after NIFT Entrance Exam?
Career Scope After NIFT
NIFTs or the National Institutes of Fashion Technology are the premier fashion institutes of the country. Although getting a job also depends on the proximity of the institute with the fashion and textile industry, there are various companies that recruit students from NIFT. Various reputed companies visit the institutes including Future Group, Raymond, Wall-Mart, Colours of Benetton, Weekender, Provogue, Schuller's and many more. After graduating from the top NIFT campuses you can expect a package varying from Rs. 3 lakh to Rs. 11 lakh per annum.
Other Top Design Colleges in India
Here are a few renowned design colleges in India besides NIFT that are known for quality education and great placement opportunities.
College Name | Location |
Mumbai, Maharashtra | |
Delhi, Delhi | |
Jaipur, Rajasthan | |
Gandhinagar, Gujarat | |
Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh | |
Bengaluru, Karnataka | |
Noida, Uttar Pradesh | |
Bengaluru, Karnataka | |
Jaipur, Rajasthan | |
Mumbai, Maharashtra |
To explore the world of design and find out more options, dial the toll-free number 1800-572-9877 or fill the Common Application Form. You can also drop your queries in the QnA zone.
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