Design
Design is a career stream for students having a creative flair. This stream is vast and offers ample opportunities to students with different talents, skills and educational background.
Design is basically a plan or a specification that is used to construct an object or an activity that leads to making a prototype, product or even a process flow. In other words, design is anything that is used to ensure that an idea becomes more presentable and understandable to the consumers. A design course includes subjects that are taught to students in order to introduce them to the fundamentals of design. Some design courses focus on teaching students history of design and architectural trends whereas others, emphasise on photography, drawing and modelling.
Candidates can pursue UG, PG and PhD in design courses with specialised fields such as fashion design, interior design, graphic design, web design, textile design, apparel design, jewellery design, industrial design, product design, furniture design etc.
Courses
There are multiple levels of courses available in the field of Design and some important graduate, post-graduate, diploma, other programs offered are given below:
UG Design Courses: Following are some undergraduate level courses in design and duration of the course is three or four years according to the specific course and institution.
Bachelor of Design (BDes): Duration is four years
- BDes (Fashion Design)
- BDes (Leather Design)
- BDes (Accessory Design)
- BA (Hons) Jewellery Design
- BDes (Knitwear Design)
- BDes (Fashion Communication)
Bachelor of Arts (BA): Course duration is 3 years
- BA (Hons) Product Design
- BA (Hons) Fashion Design
- BA (Hons) Jewellery Design
- BA (Hons) Communication Design
- BA (Hons) Fashion Styling & Image Design
- A. in Embroidery Design
- A. in Cutting and Tailoring
Bachelor of Science (BSc): Course duration is three or four years
- Sc. in Fashion Design
- Sc in Multimedia, Animation and Graphics Design
- Sc. in Fashion and Apparel Design
Bachelor of Vocational Education (BVoc): Course duration is 3 years
- BVoc Fashion Design
- BVoc Jewellery Design
- BVoc Textile Design
- BVoc Graphics & Multimedia
PG Design Courses: Followings are some postgraduate level courses in design and duration of the course is two years.
- Master of Design (MDes)
- Master of Arts (MA)
- Master of Science (MSc)
- Master of Textiles (MText)
PG Diploma: Duration of course is one or two years according to institution and specialization.
Multiple Specialisations are available in the fields such as fashion design, interior design, graphic design, web design, textile design, apparel design, jewellery design, industrial design, product design, furniture design etc
PhD in Design: Doctor of Philosophy is available in design and duration is 3 years.
Diploma in Design: Following are some of the diploma courses in design and the duration for most of the course is one years.
- Diploma in Fashion Design
- Diploma in Interior Design
- Diploma in Textile Design
- Diploma in Animation and Multimedia
Certificate Courses in Design: Following are some of the certificate courses in design and the duration for the course is six months/ one year.
- Certificate in Fashion Design
- Certificate Interior Design
- Certificate in Autocad
- Certificate in CAD
- Diploma in Animation and Multimedia
Required Skills
The skills required for Design courses include:
- Adapt to change
- Creative and artistic taste
- Eye for detail
- Goal oriented
- Good communication skills
- Good observation
- Good sketching skills
- Imagination and Graphical visualisation
- Innovativeness
- Knowledge of colours, shades and tones
- Knowledge of market requirements
- Logical Reasoning
Eligibility Criteria
To pursue a design course, a specific subject is not mandatory except for a few courses (Bsc or BFTech). This means that candidates from any educational background have the liberty to pursue their dream career if they have the required skills and aptitude.
UG Design Courses: Different courses are available at the graduate level with different criteria for eligibility.
Bachelor of Design (BDes): The eligibility criteria for BDes admissions is that the candidate should pass plus two in any stream or pass 3 year diploma from recognized institution. The eligibility criteria will vary according to the specific course and institution.
The eligibility for BDes Admission is done through entrance examinations like UCEED, AIED, NIFT, DAT or other entrance, etc in various government and private universities across India.
Apart from BDes entrance exams, rounds like Personal Interview and Portfolio Presentation are some of the important BDes admission requirements.
Bachelor of Arts (BA) Design: The eligibility criteria for BA Design admissions is a pass in plus two with any stream or subjects. The eligibility criteria will vary according to the specific course and institution.
Bachelor of Science (BSc) Design
The eligibility criteria for BSc in design admissions is that the candidate should pass plus two in science stream or equivalent. Students have to clear the entrance exam which many colleges conduct separately followed by group discussion round and personal interview round. The eligibility criteria will vary according to the specific course and institution.
Bachelor of Vocational Education (BVoc): The eligibility criteria for BVoc Design admissions is a pass in plus two with any stream or subjects. The eligibility criteria will vary according to the specific course and institution.
PG Design Courses: The eligibility criteria for PG Design admissions is that the candidate should pass Bachelor of Design or equivalent courses from a recognized university with an aggregate of 50%. Section will be based on CEED or other entrance exams conducted by various universities.The eligibility criteria will vary according to the specific course and institution. percentage may vary depending on some institutions/universities.
PhD in Design: The applicant for admission to Ph.D. programme in Design shall possess the following qualification.
M.Des or Equivalent Degree with an aggregate marks of 50%
Score in relevant entrance exams.
Diploma in Design: The course is offered to aspirants who have completed their 10+2 or equivalent level education from a recognized board/institute.
Certificate Courses in Design: The course is offered to aspirants who have completed their 10+2 or equivalent level education from a recognized board/institute.
Entrance Examination
Bachelor of Design: Following are some of the entrance examinations for BDes.
National Institute of Design Entrance Exam (NID Entrance Exam)
National Institute of Fashion Technology Entrance Exam (NIFT Entrance Exam)
Undergraduate Common Entrance Examination for Design (UCEED)
Footwear Design and Development Institute All India Selection Test (FDDI AIST)
GD Goenka Design Aptitude Test (GD Goenka DAT)
Srishti Entrance and Aptitude Test (SEAT)
Pearl Academy Entrance Exam
Master of Design: Most of the top institutes conduct admission through the common entrance examination called CEED. Some of the institutes like Indian Institute Of Crafts And Design, University of Petroleum and Energy Studies and more also conduct their own examinations like NIFT, IICD,UPES DAT, etc.
PhD in Design: Certain universities which conduct their own entrance exams in order to shortlist students for admission into the course. Some of the most popular entrance exams conducted nationally are AIEED, CIEED, SOFT, CEED, etc.
Job Profiles
There are a variety of careers available for candidates in the design field and the opportunities depend on their specialisation. The following are some of the job profiles in Design careers.
- Automotive Designer
- Ceramic & Glass Designer
- Cutting Assistant
- Exhibition Designer
- Fabric Buyer
- Fabric Quality Control Manager
- Fashion Communication
- Fashion Consultant
- Fashion Coordinator
- Fashion Designer
- Fashion Management
- Fashion Show Coordinator
- Fashion Show Organizer
- Fashion Technologist
- Footwear Designer
- Graphic Designer
- Information Designer
- Interior Designer
- Knitwear Designer
- Leather Designer
- Personal Stylist
- Product Designer
- Showroom Sales Representative
- Technical Designer
- Textile Designer
- Toy Designer
- Web Designer
Top Recruiters
Design graduates have plenty of career opportunities and course aspirants can work with designers as well as corporates. Given below are some popular design companies that hire design graduates:
- Adidas
- Arvind Garments
- Benetton
- eSpree
- Gap
- Gokaldas Images
- Indus League Clothing
- ITC Ltd.
- Kimaya
- Lacoste
- Levis
- Lifestyle
- Louis Phillip
- Madura Garments
- Mahajan Overseas
- Modelama Exports
- Nike
- Omega Designs
- Orient Craft
- Pantaloon
- Pearl Global
- Proline
- Raymonds
- Reebok
- Shahi Exports
- Shoppers Stop
- Snapdeal
- Span India
- Spykar
- Spykar jeans
- Swarovski India
- Texport Overseas
- Uni Style India
- Van Huesan
Institutions
AICTE (All India Council for Technical Education) and CoA (Council of Architecture) are the governing bodies of Architecture courses in India. After the successful completion of B.Arch course a candidate should register in CoA . Also the colleges in respective states are affiliated to state technological universities. IITs, NITs, CFTIs, Central Universities and Deemed Universities are different from this and work as autonomous institutes under the supervision of selected governing bodies.
Note: The course specializations vary at each institution, so it is required to visit the institution websites to get details of specializations, eligibility and admission criterea.
National level institutions providing BDes courses
Institutions offering MDes courses
| Name of the institution | City |
|---|---|
| Industrial Design Centre - Indian Institute Of Technology | Mumbai |
| National Institute of Design | Ahmedabad |
| National Institute of Design | Gandhinagar |
| National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) | Mumbai | National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) | Hyderabad |
Institutions offering PhD in Designing
| Name of the institution | City |
|---|---|
| Amity School of Fashion Technology | Noida |
| Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) | Guwahati |
| Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) | Kanpur |
| Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) | Mumbai |
| Symbiosis International University | Pune |
Institutions offering Diploma courses in Designing
| Name of the institution | City |
|---|---|
| IIFA Multimedia | Bangalore |
| Indian Institute of Fashion Technology | Chandigarh |
| Madras Institute of Fashion Technology | Chennai |
| International Academy of Fashion Technology | Haridwar |
| Hamstech Institute of Fashion and Interior Design | Hyderabad |
| Kanya Mahavidhyalaya | Jalandhar |
| Lovely Professional University (LPU) | Jalandhar |
| Axis Institute of Fashion Technology | Kanpur |
| JD Institute of Fashion Technology | Mumbai |
| Academy of Applied Arts | New Delhi |
| Apeejay Institute of Design | New Delhi |
| Inter National Institute of Fashion Design | New Delhi |
| Pearl Academy | New Delhi |
| FAD International | Pune |
| WLCI School of Fashion | Pune |
| National Institute of Design | Vijayawada |
Institutions offering Certificate courses in Designing
| Name of the institution | City |
|---|---|
| Abids Lakhotia Institute of Art and Design | Hyderabad |
| Arch College of Design and Business | Jaipur |
| Delhi Institute of Fashion and Technology | New Delhi |
| Designer Institute of Interior Design | Kochi |
| Exterior Interiors Ltd | Bangalore |
| Image | Kozhikode |
| Institute of Computer Animation and Design (ICAD) | Mumbai |
| Inter National Institute of Fashion Design | Pune |
| International Institute of Interior Design | Vadodara |
| Lazo Link International | Thrissur |
| Mother Teresa Institute of Science and Technology (MIST) | Ernakulam |
| Pune Institute of Applied Technology | Pune |
| Tilak Maharashtra Vidyapeeth | Pune |
Questions & Answers
Q) What is a design course?
A) A design course includes subjects/topics that are taught to students in order to introduce them to the fundamentals of design. Some design courses focus on teaching students history of design and architectural trends whereas others, emphasise on photography, drawing and modelling.
Q) What is the purpose of design?
A) The purpose of design is to ensure that your message is conveyed in the best possible way to the audience/ viewers. Design is important in order to attract customers to your product/ website as well as convey your message quickly and easily.
Q) Who is the Designer?
A) Designer is a professional who creates new products and environments or improves those that already exist. A designer by nature is a highly creative person and enjoys solving problems. Designers constantly keep in touch with new materials, processes and technology and readily understand aesthetic, social and functional needs of users
Q) How can I secure admission in a design course?
A) Most renowned design colleges conduct an entrance exam in order to shortlist aspirants for admission in courses offered by them. Students can secure admission in a design course if they fulfill the eligibility criteria for the course in which they want to secure admission as well as clear the entrance exam conducted for design course admissions. Some popular design entrance exams are listed here.
Q) Which design course is best in India?
A) Candidates can pursue design courses at the UG as well as PG level in India. The most popular design course at the UG level is Bachelor of Design (BDes) and the most popular PG level course in this stream is Master of Design (MDes).
Q) Is NIFT better than Pearl Academy?
A) National Institute of Fashion Technology or NIFT is a government college whereas Pearl Academy is a private design college. Both the design schools offer in-depth course curriculum and industry exposure to candidates who want to make a career in the field of design.
Q) Is NIFT government or private?
A) NIFT is a government college that was established in 1986 under the aegis of the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India. Further the official website informs, “NIFT Act 2006 published in the Gazette of India on 14th July, 2006 confers Statutory Status on the Institute. The Act came into effect from 1st April, 2007. The President of India is the ‘Visitor’ of the Institute under the Act”.
Q) What is the difference between Fashion Design and Fashion Technology?
A) Fashion Design deals with creating new design pieces which can be an apparel, accessory or fabric. On the other hand, Fashion Technology deals with applying science and technology to create fabrics from materials available in the market. Fashion Technology involves the use of various techniques and equipment for the production as well as management of fashion goods that are produced.