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Maheshwar Peri draws up a complete guide to this year's National Aptitude Test in Architecture.
Photograph: Pixabay.com
National Aptitude Test in Architecture (NATA) is conducted by the Council of Architecture across 136 cities, including Dubai, which is the only centre abroad.
While JEE Main is the exam used for BArch admissions at the NITs, IIIT and CFTIs, NATA scores are used by most states and private universities for admissions to the 5-year BArch courses offered by them.
The score is valid for one year only.
What's new in NATA 2018?
The application fee for General Category has been raised to ₹1,800 (inclusive of all taxes).
However candidates appearing for the exam in Dubai are required to pay an additional fee of Rs 8,000.
Payment is online.
An increase in the number of exam cities is seen from earlier years and the Aadhaar Card number is now mandatory to apply for NATA 2018.
NATA 2018 date schedule
Application Dates: January 16 to March 3, 2018
Availability of admit card: April 2, 2018
NATA exam date: April 29, 2018 (Sunday, 10:30 AM to 01:30 PM)
Result declaration: June 1, 2018
Eligibility
Candidates must have passed 10+2 or equivalent examination with 50 per cent aggregate marks; OR 10+3 Diploma (any stream) with 50 per cent aggregate marks; OR International Baccalaureate Diploma passed/appearing, after 10 years of Schooling with 50 per cent marks in aggregate.
All applicants must have studied mathematics as compulsory subject in their qualifying exam.
The qualifying exam must be from a recognized central or state board.
How to apply for NATA?
The NATA 2018 application form is online and candidates must keep their class 12 details close by before filling it.
All candidates must first register giving a valid email id and a mobile number.
After registration, they must login to enter the requisite details.
Information to be filled include personal details, address, class 10 and class 12 details, Aadhaar card plus three exam centres from the given list.
In addition, they will be required to upload a recent photograph, their signature and a community certificate if they belong to SC/ST category.
The images must be as per specifications prescribed by the authorities.
After submission of the form, the application fee must be paid online through debit/credit cards/net banking through SBI payment gateway.
After successful payment, a final confirmation page is generated, which must be saved and kept safe for future reference.
There is no need to send any documents to the COA.
Admit card
An important identity document is the NATA admit card, which will be available from April 2 for download.
The details of the candidate, exam centre, exam schedule will be mentioned therein along with the unique examination number issued to each candidate.
It is mandatory to carry one photo identity like Voter ID/ Pan Card/ Aadhar Card/ Driving Licence/e- Aadhar along with the admit card to the exam hall to appear for the exam.
The admit card will be required during admissions, hence, it is advisable to keep it safe till then.
How to prepare for NATA?
First an understanding of the syllabus and exam pattern is vital to prepare for the entrance test.
The test is divided into 2 parts.
Part A will be for 90 minutes and will consist of 20 questions from mathematics and 40 questions from general aptitude. Each question will carry 2 marks each. Part A will be online.
Part B will consist of 2 questions of 40 marks each in drawing. The exam will be for 90 minutes.
The entire exam will be in English.
There is no negative marking.
The syllabus has been mentioned in the brochure in detail and candidates must refer to each for preparation.
Preparation for NATA involves honing drawing skills as well as good practice in questions from general aptitude and mathematics.
Results
A week after the exam, the response sheets of the candidates for Part A only will be available to peruse.
The result will be declared on June 1. Candidates must login and check the same.
They must also download the result as it is a pre-requisite for admissions.
Qualifying marks for NATA
Candidates will be deemed as qualified if they score a minimum of 25 per cent in Part A and a minimum of 25 per cent in the drawing portion.
The overall qualifying marks (out of 200) is based on post-exam statistics and at the discretion of the Council.
What after NATA?
COA doesn’t hold any counselling. Applicants who clear and qualify must check and apply to the colleges/institutes of their choice.
The seat allotment will be based on the merit rank of the candidates who apply.
Many states like Punjab, Chandigarh, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, etc use the scores to conduct a centralized admission process.
Private universities and deemed to be ones like SRM, VIT etc also take NATA scores for admission.
Maheshwar Peri is the founder and chairman of Careers360.