Getting admission into one of the prestigious National Institute of Fashion Design (NIFT) is th dream of thousands of design aspirants across India. Every year, over 20,000 students appear for the NIFT entrance exam to secure the limited seats available across 19 campuses offering undergraduate and postgraduate design courses.
But truly what determines your admission? It’s not just your raw score—it is how your marks are weighted, scaled, and converted into a rank. This is where most of the design aspirants got confused. NIFT follows a unique scoring system where each component i.e CAT (Creative Ability Test), GAT (General Ability Test), and Situation test, carries different weighatge and is evaluated through a mix of objective and subjective assessments. The final merit rank, which is used to for NIFT seat allotment during NIFT counselling, is derived form this composite score.
Knowing how your NIFT marks convert into a rank and understanding what rank is needed for your desired campus like NIFT Delhi, NIFT Mumbai, NIFT Bengaluru or NIFT Hyderabad can help you plan your preparation and preferences wisely. In this blog, we will break down the complete marks vs ranks relationship, rank-wise campus cutoffs, and how to improve your chances of making it to the top NIFT colleges.
Difference Between NIFT Marks, NIFT Score and NIFT Rank
Let’s understand the difference between the 3 commonly used terms i.e., NIFT Marks, NIFT Score and NIFT Rank.
- NIFT Marks refers to the raw numerical value obtained by a candidate in each section of the exam (CAT, GAT, Situation Test or Interview). These are the basic marks you have earned in each section of NIFT exam.
- NIFT Score refers to the combined or weighted total after applying the respective weightages assigned to each test component (like 50% CAT + GAT + 20% Situation Test/Studio Test/Personal Interview). This weighted total matters for your final evaluation.
- NIFT Rank is the position of the candidate in the national merit list based on final score. The better you score, the higher your rank will be.
In other words, the higher your score, the better (lower) your rank. NIFT Rank determines you chances of getting into the top NIFT campuses and preferred courses.
We have simplified the NIFT Marks, NIFT Score, and NIFT Rank in following manner:
- NIFT Marks: What you scored in each exam section
- NIFT Score: Your weighted total that counts towards ranking
- NIFT Rank: Your position among all candidates
Your NIFT Rank is important because it influences your chances of getting into one of the top NIFT colleges in India and to pursue the courses you prefer. For example, if your score is 83.5 and your rank is 127, it means you are 127th on the national list.
NIFT Final Scores Calculation
NIFT conducts separate entrance processes for various UG & PG courses. The score calculation method varies by the course depending on the performance in written tests, situation test and/or personal interviews. The weightage of different programs in the NIFT selection process is as follows:
- Bachelor of Design (B.Des)
Selection Process:
- Stage 1 – CAT (Creative Ability Test) + GAT (General Ability Test)
- Stage 2 – Situation Test (Only for shortlisted candidates)
Final Score Calculation:
- CAT – 50%
- GAT – 30%
- Situation Test – 20%
- Bachelor of Fashion Technology (B.F.Tech)
Selection Process:
- Stage 1 – Only GAT (General Ability Test)
Final Score Calculation:
- GAT – 100%
- Master of Design (M.Des)
Selection Process:
- Stage 1 – CAT (Creative Ability Test) + GAT (General Ability Test)
- Stage 2 – Studio Test/Personal Interview (Only for shortlisted candidates)
Final Score Calculation:
- CAT – 40%
- GAT – 30%
- Studio Test/Personal Interview – 30%
- Master of Fashion Technology (M.F.Tech)
Selection Process:
- Stage 1 – GAT (General Ability Test)
- Stage 2 – Group Discussion and Personal Interview (Only shortlisted candidates
Final Score Calculation:
- GAT – 70%
- GD/PI – 30%
- Master of Fashion Management (M.F.M)
Selection Process:
- Stage 1 – GAT (General Ability Test)
- Stage 2 – Group Discussion and Personal Interview (Only shortlisted candidates
Final Score Calculation:
- GAT – 70%
- GD/PI – 30%
NIFT Entrance Exam 2024 Cutoffs
Let’s have a look at the NIFT entrance exam 2024 cutoffs to get a rough estimate of a good score in the NIFT design entrance exam.
| Institute | Opening Rank | Closing Rank |
| NIFT Bhopal | 521 | 1477 |
| NIFT Chennai | 214 | 460 |
| NIFT Gandhinagar | 208 | 466 |
| NIFT Hyderabad | 311 | 472 |
| NIFT Kannur | 594 | 1416 |
| NIFT Kolkata | 180 | 551 |
| NIFT Mumbai | 3 | 170 |
| NIFT Delhi | 15 | 104 |
NIFT Marks vs Rank 2025: Common Merit Rank (CMR) Range
Given below is the NIFT Common Merit Rank and the number of candidates who were selected by the various NIFT campuses across India on the basis of their rank.
| Program | NIFT CMR – Range | No. of Selected Candidates |
Bachelor of Design (B.Des) | 51-317 | 90 |
| 318-619 | 90 | |
| 620-825 | 90 | |
| 828-1098 | 90 | |
| 1104-1328 | 80 | |
| 1331-1605 | 90 | |
| 1612-1874 | 90 | |
| 1882-2127 | 90 | |
| 2128-2440 | 80 | |
| 2443-2741 | 90 | |
| 2727-3132 | 90 | |
| 3133-3628 | 90 | |
| 3629-4100 | 80 | |
| 4110-4714 | 90 | |
| 4715-5543 | 90 | |
| 5448-6739 | 90 | |
| 6744-8150 | 100 | |
| 8161-9875 | 100 | |
| 9883-11605 | 100 | |
| 11658-14378 | 86 | |
| Bachelor of Fashion Technology (B.F.Tech) Apparel Production | 11-275 | 40 |
| Master of Fashion Technology (M.F.Tech) | 276-929 | 89 |
| Master of Design (M.Des) | 88-100 | 3 |
Master of Fashion Management (M.F.M) | 24-525 | 91 |
| 24-352 | 80 | |
| 353-814 | 90 | |
| 816-1310 | 81 |
NIFT Marks vs NIFT Rank 2025: Seat Matrix
The National Testing Agency (NTA) released the NIFT Seat Matrix every year. Below is the table given to get a deeper insight into how many seats are available for each designing program across 19 NIFT campuses.
| NIFT Colleges | Seats Available |
| NIFT Bengaluru | 304 |
| NIFT Bhopal | 287 |
| NIFT Chennai | 304 |
| NIFT Daman | 82 |
| NIFT Gandhinagar | 266 |
| NIFT Hyderabad | 266 |
| NIFT Kannur | 287 |
| NIFT Kolkata | 304 |
| NIFT Mumbai | 304 |
| NIFT Delhi | 376 |
| NIFT Raebareli | 228 |
| NIFT Patna | 246 |
| NIFT Panchkula | 246 |
| NIFT Shillong | 205 |
| NIFT Kangra | 287 |
| NIFT Jodhpur | 246 |
| NIFT Bhubaneshwar | 246 |
| NIFT Srinagar | 230 |
| NIFT Varanasi | 123 |
| Total NIFT Seats | 4837 |
Factors that determine NIFT Marks vs NIFT Rank
Understanding the factors which determine NIFT Marks and NIFT Rank can help design aspirants in planning their preparation strategically and aiming for a score which given them a good rank. Let’s have a look.
- The total count of candidates who registered for the NIFT exam.
- The number of questions presented in the NIFT question paper.
- The difficulty level of the NIFT examination.
- The collective performance of students in the exam.
- Historocal trends observed in NIFT marks vs NIFT rank data from previous year.
Some Preparation Tips for Better NIFT Rank
NIFT Score and NIFT Rank go hand in hand. If your NIFT Score is good, you will likely get a good rank. Let’s look at some preparation tips for scoring better NIFT rank.
- Aspirants must priortize CAT preparation as it covers 50% weightage of overall score. This will increase your chances of scoring more in NIFT exam.
- Staying sharp and updated in GAT (General Ability Test) will also helps in scoring good scores as it covers Quant, English and Logical Reasoning.
- Students can ace the Situation Test with mock models. Practice, practice and practice to learn from your weak areas and improve your performance in NIFT situation test.
- Manage your time, focus on full-mocks with a timer, and follow up with mock analysis.
- Always define your backup campus and specialization priorities based on your projected rank.
- For M.Des, work on your portfolio, interview skills, and design thinking.
Understanding how your NIFT marks translate into a final rank can give you a clearer picture of your admissions to NIFT possibilities. The exact rank will depend on various factors like category, competition, and performance in each stage, but having an idea gives a rough idea.
By grasping how your NIFT marks transform into a rank, you can realistically target campuses aligned with your performance. Aspirants must aim high for 82+ normalizes into a top 200 rank which will open their doors to premier NIFT campuses. Use this insights-driven strategy to set preparation goals and choose campus preferences wisely !!
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
The total marks for the NIFT entrance exam are 120. For every wrong answer, 0.25 marks will be deducted.
The candidates who want to apply for NIFT entrance exam must have passed 10+2 from a recognized board from any stream.
A good rank in the NIFT entrance exam would be somewhere between 200 to 500.
No, they are evaluated and ranked separately as per their exam pattern and components.
No, NIFT doesn’t releases such chart. The data shared in this blog is based on past trends and student insights.