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Common Entrance Examination for Design
Free CEED past year papers — fully loaded with marking scheme and section-wise breakdown. Practice NAT, MSQ and MCQ exactly as they appear in the real paper.
Frequently Asked Questions
CEED (Common Entrance Examination for Design) is conducted by IIT Bombay for admission to M.Des programmes at IITs and IISc Bangalore. It is a postgraduate design entrance exam and one of the most competitive in India.
Candidates with a Bachelor's degree (10+2+4 or minimum 3-year fine arts/design degree depending on the institute) or a 5-year diploma from a recognised institution are eligible. Final-year students who will complete their degree by the academic year of admission may also apply.
UCEED is an undergraduate entrance exam leading to B.Des programmes at IITs. CEED is a postgraduate entrance exam leading to M.Des programmes at IITs and IISc. CEED tests a deeper level of design knowledge and thinking — it is intended for candidates who already have a design or engineering background.
CEED has two parts. Part A is an online screening test with NAT, MSQ, and MCQ questions covering visual and spatial reasoning, design awareness, and analytical ability. Only candidates who clear the Part A cutoff are evaluated for Part B, which is a subjective studio-based drawing and design test.
Yes, Part A has negative marking for both MCQ and MSQ questions. MCQ questions deduct 0.5 marks for a wrong answer, and MSQ questions deduct 1 mark. NAT questions have no negative marking. Part B has no negative marking.
IIT Bombay announces category-wise cutoffs after Part A results. The cutoff varies each year depending on the difficulty level of the paper and the number of candidates. Historically, scoring above 50–55% in Part A puts you in a competitive position, though this varies by category.
IIT Bombay, IIT Delhi, IIT Guwahati, IIT Hyderabad, IIT Jodhpur, IIT Roorkee, IISc Bangalore, and several other institutes accept CEED scores for M.Des admissions.
There is no limit on the number of attempts for CEED. Candidates can appear as many times as they wish, as long as they meet the eligibility criteria. CEED scores are valid for one year.
Yes, engineers are eligible for CEED and form a significant portion of applicants. Many IIT M.Des programmes actively seek candidates with engineering backgrounds who also demonstrate strong design aptitude. The exam is open to graduates from any discipline.
M.Des specialisations at IITs include Industrial Design, Communication Design, Interaction Design, Mobility Design, Animation Design, and Visual Communication, among others. Each IIT offers a different set of specialisations.
CEED Part A covers Visualisation and Spatial Ability, Environmental and Social Awareness, Analytical and Logical Reasoning, Language and Creativity, Design Thinking, and Product and Communication Design knowledge. Design history, material awareness, and typography also appear regularly.
CEED is typically conducted in January each year, on the same day as UCEED. Applications open around October–November of the preceding year. The official UCEED-CEED website publishes exact dates.
Currently Roughworks covers Part A objective questions only. Part B is subjective and studio-based, requiring hands-on drawing and design practice that is best done offline with a mentor or through portfolio preparation.
CEED is designed for postgraduates and rewards candidates with a genuine interest in and exposure to design. While a design background helps in Part B, candidates from engineering, architecture, or liberal arts backgrounds regularly clear Part A with focused preparation on past papers and design awareness.