Step outside the box: Explore India’s lesser-known entrance exams for a competitive edge!

Want to get into best colleges? Then this is your chance…
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The key to getting into a college is mainly the entrance exam. Entrance exams are often conducted to judge the student’s ability, sharpness and knowledge. It is to check the overall aptitude level of a student. Various institutes/ universities conduct entrance exams every year for different kinds of courses. Some of the lesser known entrance exams are:

UCEED (Undergraduate Common Entrance Exam for Design)

This entrance exam is conducted in Bombay IIT for getting admissions into designs programs at various renowned IITs. Especially for getting enrolled to Bachelor of design program.
Eligibility criteria – passing of 12th board

NID Exam (National Institute of Design)

The NID design aptitude test (DAT). It is one of the toughest national level entrance exam conducted by National Institute of Design (NID) to provide admission to design related UG and PG courses.
Eligibility criteria – completion of 10th and 12th boards
Age limit – Minimum age to apply is 19 years
The exam is conducted in two stages: DAT prelims and DAT mains

TISS BAT (Tata Institute of Social Sciences Bachelor Admission Test)

Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) conducts this entrance exam for admission to undergraduate programs like BA in social sciences, BA in social work. It is provided to enroll in various TISS campuses all over India.
Eligibility criteria – completion of 12th grade
Age limit – below 23 years

NEST (National Entrance Screening Test)

This exam is conducted to get enrolled into a 5-year Integrated M.Sc. program in subjects like biology, chemistry, mathematics and physics. This exam is conducted for getting into National Institute of Science Education and Research (NISER), Bhubaneswar and University of Mumbai – Department of Atomic Energy Centre for Excellence in Basic Sciences (UM-DAE CEBS) Mumbai. The mode of examination is online.
Eligibility criteria – passed 12th grade with at least 60% and should secure a position in the NEST merit list
Age limit – 20 years and below

NIFT (National Institute of Fashion Technology Entrance Exam)

This is an exam conducted by National Institute of Fashion Technology. They offer both bachelor’s and master’s programs. It is conducted in two parts:
(i) written exams [Creative Ability Test (CAT)-offline and the General Ability Test (GAT)-online]
(ii) situation test/ personal interview
Eligibility criteria for bachelor’s programs: completion of 12th grade and below 24 years
Eligibility criteria for master’s programs: undergraduate degree/ diploma from a recognised university

AILET (All India Law Entrance Test)

National Law University, Delhi conducts this entrance exam for admission to the UG, PG and PhD programs offered there. It is an offline exam.
Eligibility criteria:
For bachelor’s programs – completion of 12th grade with minimum 45%; students appearing for their 12th exams are also eligible to appear for this exam
For master’s programs – LLB or equivalent law degree with minimum 50% from a recognised institute
For PhD programs – LLM or an equivalent degree with minimum 55% from a recognised institute

XAT (Xavier Aptitude Test)

XAT is conducted by Xavier School of Management. It is a national-level exam for admission to MBA or PGDM programs. Over 1,000 B-schools, apart from XLRI and 10 other XAMI member colleges, accept XAT scores for admission to their PG programs.
Eligibility criteria – Bachelor’s degree of minimum three years or equivalent in any discipline from a recognised university; Students in their final year of bachelor’s degree or awaiting their results can also apply.

TISS NET (Tata Institute of Social Sciences National Entrance Test)

It is an entrance exam for admission to their PG programs like social work, human resource management, and public development studies. The mode of exam will be online and the questions will be MCQs.
Eligibility criteria – Bachelor’s degree or an equivalent from a recognised university; students in their final year of bachelor’s can also apply

These are some of the entrance exams that can help you to get enrolled into some of the best colleges in India. Explore some of these courses and get your career started. Best of luck for your studies and your well awaited future.