CEED 2026 Exam Dates, Registration, Syllabus, PYQs & More [Check Latest Updates]

Summary: IIT Bombay conducts the most coveted CEED exam 2026. This exam is conducted to admit candidates to the M.Des programs that the participating colleges offer. Get a complete overview of the CEED 2026 examination.

CEED (Common Entrance Exam for Design) is a coveted exam conducted for admission to the M.Des and PhD courses in participating IITs and other Design schools. IIT Bombay has announced the CEED 2026 notification on the official website, ceed.iitb.ac.in.

Latest Updates on CEED Registration 2026

• Registration for CEED 2026 began on 1st October 2025
• Last date for registration was 31st October 2025
• Last date to register with late fees was 7th November 2025
• CEED 2026 official exam date is 18th January 2026

Candidates fulfilling the basic eligibility requirements can complete the CEED 2026 application form within the announced timeframe discussed in this article. 

Go through the entire page to get a complete insight into the CEED 2026 exam, eligibility criteria, important CEED 2026 exam dates and much more! 

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Table of Content

• CEED 2026 Exam Dates
• CEED 2026 Eligibility Criteria
• CEED 2026 Registration Form
• CEED 2026 Admit Card
• Exam Pattern of CEED 2026
• Syllabus of CEED 2026
• CEED 2026 Exam Day Instructions

What is the CEED Exam 2026?

The CEED exam, or Common Entrance Examination for Design, is a national-level entrance exam in India. CEED 2026 exam official notification can be found on its official website. 

It is conducted by the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) primarily aimed at assessing the candidates' aptitude for design involving visual perception ability, drawing skills, logical reasoning, creativity, and communication skills. 

CEED  Exam Full Form: Common Entrance Exam for Design

CEED 2026 Exam Dates & Schedule

Check the important CEED 2026 Exam dates for this academic year by referring to the table below:

Start date for online registration with regular fee	October 01, 2025, 01:00 pm
Last date for online registration with regular fee	October 31, 2025
Last date for online registration with late fee	November 07, 2025, 5:00 pm
Start date for Admit Card downloading	January 02, 2026, 01:00 pm
Last date for rectification of discrepancies in the Admit Card	January 08, 2026, 5:00 pm
CEED 2026: date and time of exam	January 18, 2026 (Sunday) 9:00 am to 12:00 noon
Release of draft answer key for Part-A and release of candidate’s response for Part-A	January 20, 2026
Last date for uploading comments (if any) on the draft answer key for Part-A in the candidate’s portal	January 22, 2026, 5:00 pm
Release of final answer key for Part-A	January 28, 2026, 5:00 pm
Announcement of cut-off marks for Part-A	February 05, 2026
Declaration of results	March 04, 2026
Score Cards available for downloading	March 10, 2026
Last date for downloading Score Cards	July 31, 2026

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CEED 2026 Eligibility Criteria

Check the CEED eligibility requirements listed below. Note that the eligibility criteria for admission to various institutes may differ from those for appearing for CEED 2026.

Before applying for CEED exam, candidates must check whether they meet the required eligibility criteria for admission to various institutes.

1. CEED 2026 Age Limit

There is no age limit to appear for CEED. Also, a candidate can appear for CEED exam any number of times.

2. CEED 2026 Educational Qualification

Candidates must have completed a degree/diploma/postgraduate degree programme of a minimum of THREE years (after 10+2 level) or must be appearing for the final examination of such a program by July 2026, or must have passed the GD Arts diploma programme (10+5 level) by July 2026.

3. Maximum Attempts

As per the CEED eligibility criteria, candidates can attempt the examination as long as they qualify for the age limit. 

4. Scribe Qualification

The orthopedically or visually impaired candidates will be allowed to have a scribe facility to appear in part A of the CEED examination. The candidates will be required to follow the following rules to get a scribe:

• They have to mention that they belong to the PWD category in the application form
• The scribe shall be provided to the candidates by the authorities themselves

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CEED 2026 Application Form

The CEED 2026 application form is available on the official website of IIT Bombay. The candidates with basic eligibility can fill the same within the timeframe mentioned in the table above.

Here are some important steps that are helpful to the application:

• Visit the official website of IIT Bombay
• On the homepage, click on the CEED application form link
• Complete your registration with details like name, date of birth, gender, category, etc
• Enter details like qualifying examination, passing year and mobile number
• Enter the academic details, personal and correspondence address and then move forward
• Pay the CEED application fee relevant to the category and then submit the CEED application form

Documents Required with CEED Application Form 2026

Documents	File Size
Photograph	Size: 3.5X4.5 cm Minimum Size: 5KB Maximum Size: 100 KB
Signature	Size: 3.5X4.5 cm Minimum Size: 2 KB Maximum Size: 50 KB
Copy of degree/diploma	Minimum Size: 2 KB Maximum Size: 50 KB
Certificate from the Principal of the College/Head of Department	Minimum Size: 2 KB Maximum Size: 50 KB
Category Certificate	Less than 500KB
PwD certificate	Less than 500KB
Age and nationality proof	Less than 500KB

Read more: CEED 2026 Preparation Strategy

CEED 2026 Application Fee

CEED registration form must be submitted ONLINE ONLY through the official website, http://www.ceed.iitb.ac.in.

Note that this registration fee is non-refundable and non-transferable. It must be paid through the payment option provided on the website when submitting the registration form. 

The online registration portal provides detailed instructions for paying registration fees. Credit card, debit card, and net banking options are available. The registration fee shown above does NOT include service and other charges and the processing fees that banks may levy.

The normal registration fee shown above is applicable till the regular closing date of registration. A late fee of ₹500 applies to ALL candidates for registrations submitted after the regular closing date. Registration fee:

• ₹ 2,000/- for all women candidates
• ₹ 2,000/- for (SC/ST/PwD) candidates
• ₹ 4,000/- for all other candidates

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CEED 2026 Admit Card/Hall Ticket

• CEED admit card has to be downloaded from the official website of IIT Bombay.
• The convenor releases the soft copy of the admit card for the eligible candidates.
• The admit card has details like the candidate’s name, roll number, date of the exam, centre of the exam, timing and important instructions related to the exam.
• It is an important document to be carried to the examination hall to avoid disqualification. 

Admit Card will be available for downloading from the official CEED website (www.ceed.iitb.ac.in) tentatively from January, 2026 till the date of the examination. 

Please print out the Admit Card clearly before coming to the examination centre. In case of any discrepancies in the Admit Card, please write to ceed@iitb.ac.in before the deadline.

CEED 2026 Exam Pattern

As per the official notification, the CEED exam will be held in two parts, A and B. Candidates preparing to appear for this year’s exam must prepare topics mentioned in the CEED syllabus to qualify for both parts.

CEED exam 2026 will be conducted tentatively in January 2026. This examination will consist of two parts, Part A and Part B. Candidates must attempt questions from both parts.

Part A will be conducted from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m., followed by Part B from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon.

Go through the section below to learn more about the CEED 2026 exam pattern and syllabus:

CEED Part A Exam Pattern 2026

Part-A (Total marks: 150; Maximum time: 1 hour)

Section 1: NAT (Numerical Answer Type): 8 questions (4 marks each; no negative marks). For these questions, the answer is a number that needs to be entered using a virtual keyboard on the computer screen. No choices will be shown for these questions.

Section 2: MSQ (Multiple Select Question): 10 questions. Each MSQ may have one or more than one correct choice(s) out of the four given.

Section 3: MCQ (Multiple Choice Question): 26 questions (3 marks each for the correct answer; 0.5 negative marks for incorrect answers). Each MCQ will have four choices, out of which only one is the correct answer.

Section	Number of Questions	Question Number	Marks for each correct answer	Marks for each wrong answer	Marks for each question not attempted	Total Marks
NAT	8	1 - 8	4	0	0	32
MSQ	10	9 - 18	Partial Marking (as detailed in section 2)	- 1	0	40
MCQ	26	19 - 44	3	- 0.5	0	78
Total	44	1 - 44				150

CEED Part B Exam Pattern 2026

(Total marks: 100; Maximum time: 2 hours)

Part B consists of five questions to test design, drawing and writing skills. The questions in Part B will be displayed on the computer screen, and the answers should be written in the answer book provided by the invigilator (NOT into the Computer).

However, you need to tick the appropriate box on the computer screen to indicate that you have answered the same. In the case of PwD candidates availing the use of a scribe, assistance in attempting Part B is not permitted, as the question is aimed at evaluating their drawing skills. Previous CEED question papers can be referred to for practice and understanding the type of drawing-based questions asked, but during the exam, all work must be done independently.

• Part-B answer booklets will be collected at the end of the examination
• Part-B questions are mandatory
• The entire paper (Part A and Part B) must be finished within the stipulated time for each part

Section	Number of Questions	Question Number	Partial Marks	Negative Marks	Marks
Sketching	1	1	Yes	No	20
Creativity	1	2	Yes	No	20
Form Sensitivity	1	3	Yes	No	20
Visual Sensitivity	1	4	Yes	No	20
Problem Identification	1	5	Yes	No	20
Total	5	1 – 5			100

Refer: CEED 2026 Preparation books

CEED Shortlisting Process (How Candidates Are Selected for Part-B Evaluation)

The CEED selection process is two-stage:

1. Part-A – Computer-based screening test

2. Part-B – Drawing, creativity, design analysis test (evaluated manually)

But not every candidate’s Part-B answer sheet is checked. Only candidates who clear the Part-A cut-off are shortlisted. This is why understanding the shortlisting rules is extremely important.

Below is a simple, accurate breakdown of how the CEED shortlisting process works.

1) CEED Part-A Is Only a Screening Test

Part-A contains:

• Visualization questions
• Spatial reasoning
• Analytical reasoning
• Design aptitude
• Observation questions
• Basic MCQ/MSQ/NAT aptitude questions

Part-A is computer-graded and is only used to shortlist candidates for the evaluation of Part-B.

Important:

• Part-A marks do NOT directly contribute to your final CEED score.
• They only decide who qualifies for Part-B evaluation.

2) Official CEED Part-A Cut-Off Formula (Used Every Year)

CEED uses a specific formula to calculate category-wise cut-offs for shortlisting.

The Part-A cut-off for each category is calculated as:

Formula for the Part-A cutoff (General / Open category):

𝜇 + (𝜎⁄2) = 𝛿

Where:

• μ = Average marks of all candidates in Part-A
• σ = Standard deviation of Part-A marks

Relaxed (category) cutoffs:

• OBC-NCL and EWS: 0.9 × δ
• SC / ST / PwD: 0.5 × δ

Candidates must meet their respective category cutoffs to have Part-B evaluated.

This ensures that the cut-off is performance-based and changes every year according to difficulty level.

Let’s understand this with an example, suppose for a given year:

• Mean (μ) = 45.48
• Standard deviation (σ) = 16.98.

General Cut-off:

δ=μ+σ/2 = 45.48+16.98/2 = 45.48+8.49 = 53.97

So δ ≈ 53.97 (General / Open).

Category cutoffs:

• OBC-NCL / EWS cutoff = 0.9 × δ = 0.9 × 53.97 ≈ 48.57
• SC / ST / PwD cutoff = 0.5 × δ = 0.5 × 53.97 ≈ 26.99

3) Only Candidates Who Clear the Part-A Cut-Off Are Shortlisted

Once category-wise cut-offs are applied:

• Only those who meet or exceed their category’s cut-off get shortlisted.
• Only their Part-B will be evaluated manually by experts.

Everyone else’s Part-B is discarded automatically. Part-B thus has a much larger influence on the final rank.

This is one of the most important CEED rules and often misunderstood.

4) Why Part-B Is Evaluated Only for Shortlisted Candidates

Part-B tests:

• Drawing ability
• Creative problem solving
• Design thinking
• Conceptual representation
• Storyboarding
• Visual communication
• Form analysis

These answers are manually checked by a panel of design faculty.
Since over 10,000 candidates appear for CEED each year, checking every script is not feasible.

Thus, the Part-A cut-off filters candidates for detailed evaluation.

5) Calculation of the Final CEED Score

Your final CEED score is calculated only after Part-B is checked (for shortlisted candidates).

The formula is:

Important details:

• Part-B carries more weightage (75%), because CEED is a design aptitude exam.
• Candidates who are NOT shortlisted get NO final score and will not be included in the final result list.

Practical implications & strategy advice for aspirants:

1. Treat Part-A as a strict gatekeeper.

You must secure at least the category cutoff in Part-A to get your Part-B evaluated. Don’t ignore Part-A because it’s only 25% of final score - it controls access to Part-B.

2. Aim safely above the expected δ.

Because μ and σ vary each year, target a buffer above "computed δ" (if you see it published). Practically, aim for a Part-A score that historically sits comfortably above the mean + σ/2 band.

3. Balance preparation: clear the gate, then maximize Part-B.

Study Part-A topics (visualization, reasoning, quantitative aptitude, observation) sufficiently to exceed cutoff. But once the gate is likely secured, prioritize Part-B (sketching, studio tasks, design thinking) because it decides most of the rank.

4. Don’t rely on re-evaluation.

CEED has no re-eval policy. Check your answer carefully during the exam, since no re-checks are available later.

5. Keep category rules in mind.

If you’re in a reserved category, the relaxed cutoffs help, but remember Part-B is still the major determinant for rank.

CEED 2026 Syllabus [Section-wise]

IIT Bombay has announced the CEED revised syllabus PDF for candidates. Those looking to appear and prepare for the examination should use the CEED syllabus PDF. Candidates who prepare for the topics mentioned in the syllabus crack the examination easily.

Sections	CEED 2026 Syllabus
Part A	Visualization and spatial reasoning: Ability to visualise and transform 2D shapes and 3D objects and their spatial relationships. Practical and scientific knowledge: Know-how of scientific principles and everyday objects. Observation and design sensitivity: The capacity to detect concealed properties in daily life and think critically about them. Attention to detail, classification, analysis, inference and prediction. Environment and society: General awareness of environmental, social and cultural connections with design. Analytical and logical reasoning: Ability to analyze qualitative and quantitative information. Language: Proficiency in reading and comprehending Standard English. Creativity: Grasp of verbal and non-verbal analogies, metaphors, signs and symbols. Art and Design knowledge: Awareness about art/ artefact/ product, artists/designers, art/design history and trends. Design methods and practices: Knowledge of media, materials, production processes, and ergonomics.
Part B	Drawing: Ability to draw products, people or scenes in proportion with good line quality, composition, proportion, perspective and shading. Creativity: Capacity to think out-of-the-box and develop unique and diverse solutions. Communication: Skills to communicate concepts and ideas clearly with the help of text and visuals. Problem identification: Capability to understand the user and the context, knowledge of properties of materials and their appropriate use in design.

Use Creativedge Free Resources 2026 Strategically

FREE CEED Study Material Name	Link
CEED Study Material for Drawing	Click Here
CEED Study Material for Creativity	Click Here
CEED Study Material for Form Sensitivity	Click Here
CEED Study Material for Visual Sensitivity	Click Here
CEED Study Material for Problem Solving	Click Here
CEED Study Material for Logical Reasoning	Click Here
CEED Study Material for Language and Creativity	Click Here
CEED Study Material for Aptitude	Click Here

CEED 2026 Results

• CEED 2026 results are released on the official website at least 10 to 15 days after the examination.
• Candidates appearing in the examination must check using their login ID and password.
• Those who fail to qualify for the result are not eligible to appear in the counselling process.
• CEED result comprises details like the candidate’s name, roll number, selection status and subject-wise marks secured. 

CEED 2026 Exam Day Instructions

• Reporting time: Candidates should report at the examination centre at the reporting time, along with a printout of the Admit Card. The biometric information (thumb impression and photograph) must be recorded before appearing for the examination. 
• Identity proof: Candidates should bring a valid photo identity proof (original) and the Admit Card to the examination centre. Candidates will not be admitted to the examination centre without proper identity proof (college-issued identity card, passport, driving license, PAN card, Voter ID, Aadhar card or printed e-Aadhar card).
• Stationery: Candidates must bring their own drawing materials like pens, pencils, sketch pens and colours for the examination. Candidates should NOT bring drawing sheets to the examination hall.

Electronic gadgets such as mobile phones, calculators, smart or digital watches and the like are NOT allowed in the examination hall. The use of any electronic gadget will disqualify the candidature.

CEED 2026 Cut-Off Marks

• IIT Bombay announces the CEED exam cut-off marks on the official website only.
• The candidates writing the examination must download and go through the minimum cut-off marks to get an idea of the overall exam level.
• These cut-off marks for the CEED 2026 exam are released by considering factors like the number of seats, difficulty level of the exam and overall competition level.
• Candidates whose marks are more than the prescribed cut-off marks are considered for the next round of the admission process.
• Generally, a score above 50-60 is considered good in the CEED 2026 examination. 

CEED 2026 Participating Colleges List 

CEED exam is one of the leading entrance exams for admission into the M.Des and PhD in Design.

Candidates who clear the examination become eligible for admission to any participating colleges. In the section below, we have named the top CEED participating colleges:

• IIT Bombay - Industrial Design Centre
• IIT Delhi - Department of Design
• IISc Bangalore - Centre for Product Design and Manufacturing
• IIT Guwahati - Department of Design
• IIT Hyderabad - Department of Design
• IIITDM Jabalpur - Design Discipline
• UPES Dehradun - School of Design Studies
• VIT University - School of Design
• Srishti School of Art, Design, and Technology - Bengaluru
• MIT Institute of Design - Pune

CEED Mock Tests 2026

CEED 2026 mock tests should be attempted regularly to get an insight into the overall preparation level.

Attempting mock tests is an important aspect of preparing for the examination. Candidates can easily practice and develop their skills by doing so. It also helps one gain enough insight regarding the format of the test and the difficulty level of the questions asked.

Candidates can easily highlight their strong and weak points and then work accordingly. 

Conclusion

The Common Entrance Examination for Design (CEED) is a highly competitive exam that requires knowledge, skill, and creativity. It is the first step to gaining admission into various design institutes in India.

The CEED 2026 exam is an essential part of the process for those pursuing a career in design. With its wide range of topics, the CEED exam allows aspirants to demonstrate their creativity and technical proficiency. CEED sample papers are a valuable resource for practice, helping candidates familiarize themselves with the question format and the type of design challenges they are likely to encounter.

With the right preparation and approach, the CEED 2026 exam can be a great opportunity for those looking to advance their design careers.