NATA 2020–21 Date, Eligibility, Exam Pattern, Syllabus, Admission Process

Council of Architecture (CoA) is the sole authority that is responsible to conduct National Aptitude Test in Architecture (NATA) for candidates seeking B.Arch admissions across its participating institutes. NATA is a national level exam that shall take place twice this year. While the NATA Phase I schedule is declared, Phase II dates are yet to be notified.

The NATA question paper basically consists of two parts -

• Part A — Cognitive Skill Test (Drawing and Visual Composition)
• Part B — Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and General Aptitude

The Council released the official brochure of NATA 2020 on February 01, 2020. Later, the dates of various events were postponed in the view of COVID-19, and a revised brochure was issued.

Click to download the revised brochure of NATA 2020.

Important Update — As per the revised notification by CoA, NATA application window was reopened on July 25, 2020 (10:30 AM) and will remain active till August 12, 2020 (11.59 PM). In the meantime, candidates can edit the application form through the correction window facility.

The first phase of the NATA 2020 exam is scheduled on August 29, 2020 in two shifts — 10:00 AM to 12 Noon & 12:20 PM to 2:30 PM. This year, Part A shall be followed by Part B with a gap of three minutes between the papers. Both of the papers shall be conducted online. NATA admit card will be available online from August 22, 2020 till the examination date. The council will declare NATA result on September 03, 2020. The sectional score (of both the parts) as well as the overall score is considered for the final result.

No centralised counselling is available for NATA. The admission criteria vary from one participating college to another as per their respective admission cut off scores. Skim through this article to get complete details on the National Aptitude Test in Architecture .

Candidates must pay heed to the below given key points pertaining to the National Aptitude Test in Architecture 2020 -

1. The registration process for NATA 2020 is open till August 12, 2020.
2. Candidates of any age group can apply for NATA.
3. International students have the same eligibility criteria as Indian Nationals.
4. Any applicant who is found ineligible during the admission process through NATA has to face cancellation.
5. NATA application fee can be submitted through online mode only.
6. Application correction window is available only once. Candidates cannot edit the information in their application form after the window closes.
7. Printout of NATA application form must be retained for further admission process.
8. NATA admit card along with identity proof and photograph of the candidate is mandatory at the exam centre.
9. This year, examinees can choose to appear for the National Aptitude Test in Architecture either from their place of stay or from a designated exam centre.
10. Applicants who choose to appear from their place of stay have to take the NATA exam in the first shift only i.e. 10 AM to 12 PM.
11. Examinees shall be given 45 minutes to solve Part B of the exam, which shall be followed by Part A after an intermission of 3 minutes. For Part A, 72 minutes is the maximum time limit.
12. As per the qualifying cutoff for NATA 2020, candidates have to score a minimum of 25% marks in both Part A and B.
13. CoA releases the overall qualifying cutoff along with the result.
14. Over 400 colleges shortlist candidates on the basis of their performance in NATA and their marks in 10+2.
15. The validity of the NATA score is one year from the date of the exam.

CoA has released the NATA 2020 schedule for the first test and applicants must be aware of the same to avoid any last minute hassle. The table given below contains NATA 2020 exam dates -

Schedule for NATA 2020 Phase I

NATA — Eligibility Criteria

CoA will accept the applications of the eligible candidates only. The authority may cancel the candidature of those who submit the form without paying heed to NATA eligibility criteria. Check out the eligibility conditions laid down by the Council -

Latest Update — As per the CoA recommendation, the Ministry of Education has relaxed the admission criteria through NATA and JEE Main Paper 2 by scrapping the minimum marks requirement of 50% in qualifying exam (10+2 or 10+3 Diploma). The Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal tweeted that 10+2 passed students with PCM or 10+3 Diploma Holders with Mathematics are eligible for admission to BArch in the 2020–21 session once they qualify NATA or JEE Main Paper 2.

Age Limit

No age bar has been specified by CoA to apply for NATA

Educational Qualification

• Aspirants must have passed 10+2 with Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics as core subjects
• Aspirants who possess a 10+3 diploma, with Mathematics as a subject, can also apply for NATA
• Candidates appearing for Class 12 examination with Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics can also apply, provided they furnish a valid marksheet and certificate after result declaration
• No round off of marks is valid while applying in NATA. For instance, 49.9% marks in the qualifying exam would be considered as 49.9% itself and not 50%
• The validity of NATA scores is one year from the time an applicant appears for the exam

Note — The eligibility requirements for international students are similar to that of Indian Nationals. CoA has not prescribed any different criteria for NRI candidates.

NATA — Application Form

NATA 2020 application form is available online and only eligible candidates can proceed for application process that involves the steps like -

Before starting with the application process of NATA 2020, candidates should be ready with below given pre-requisites -

1. Marksheet of qualifying exam, passport size photographs, photo identity proof, Aadhaar number, email address, mobile number, debit/credit card or net banking details etc
2. Scanned documents that include the photograph and signature of the applicants in the prescribed jpg/jpeg format
3. To login into the NATA account, candidates must use web browsers like Mozilla Firefox 3.0 and above, Google Chrome 3.0 and above, and Internet Explorer 8 and above, to avoid technical error

Step 1 — Online Registration

Registration is the primary step of NATA application procedure. Candidates must visit NATA website (nata.in) and enter their basic information like name, date of birth, email ID, and mobile number to generate Application Number and Password. Candidates must retain the application number and password for further login requirements.

Step 2 — Filling details in the Application Form

With the given credentials, registrants must re-login to the NATA account to fill the mandatory details in the application form. The required information includes -

• Basic details like name, date of birth, application number, father’s name, mother’s name, category, contact number, nationality, type of disability etc.
• Communication and permanent address and exam-related information, exam centre preference etc.
• Educational qualification like marks details of Class 10 th and 12 th

Step 3: Uploading the Scanned Images

After filling the details, candidates need to upload the scanned copies of photograph and signature in the below given format and specifications -

Image Specifications

Note — Candidates must ensure that the scanned images of photograph and signature are clearly visible.

Step 4 — Payment of Application Fee

Once the details are filled and documents are uploaded online, candidates are redirected to the payment window. The modes of NATA application fee payment could be credit card/debit card or net banking. No offline payment option is available. No candidate is exempted from fee payment on the basis of their gender. However, the authority provides category-wise relaxation in fee amount. The same is specified as under -

NATA Application Fee

Note — Candidates must take a print out of the confirmation page and retain it for further use.

NATA admit card will be available online for the registered candidates from August 22, 2020 till August 29, 2020. Candidates can download their admit card from the official website of NATA. Application number and password are required to login and download the NATA hall ticket. Candidates can take the support of technical helpdesk in case of any difficulty in accessing the admit card. It is mandatory for the test takers to carry the NATA admit card along with one valid photo ID proof and passport size photograph.

CoA suggests the applicants to carefully verify the information given in the NATA hall ticket and report the authority in case of any error or discrepancy. NATA admit card contains below specified details -

Note — Any candidate who presents a torn or mutilated copy of NATA admit card with distorted photograph will be barred from appearing for the exam.

The Council makes it easier for the candidates to appear for the exam from their place of residence. However, they can also choose any three exam centres (in order of preference) while filling the application form. Some of the exam centres are listed below -

NATA Test Centres

NATA 2020 exam will take place in two sessions — Session I — 10:00 AM to 12:00 Noon and Session II — 12:30 PM to 2:30 PM. The paper consists of two parts — Part A and Part B. The pattern of NATA 2020 exam is specified below -

NATA Exam Pattern 2020 — Part A

• Sections — Drawing and Visual Composition
• Mode of Test — Online or Computer based
• Medium of Exam — English
• Type of Questions — Preferential Type Questions (PTQ) and Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ)
• Number of Questions — 10
• Time Allotted — 72 minutes

Sectional Weightage of Questions in Part A NATA Exam Pattern 2020 — Part B

Highlights of NATA 2020 exam pattern of Part B are as follows -

• Sections — Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and General Aptitude & Logical Reasoning
• Mode of Test — Online or Computer based
• Medium of Exam — English
• Type of Questions — Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ)
• Number of Questions — 50
• Time Allotted — 45 minutes

Sectional Weightage of Questions in Part B Important Note — NATA Exam Pattern 2020 — Distribution of Marks Part B will be held first and will be followed by Part A. There will be a time halt of three minutes between both the papers. Distribution of Marks

The details of marks distribution in Part A and Part B of NATA exam are mentioned below in tabular form -

NATA Syllabus for Part A (Drawing and Visual Composition) NATA Syllabus for Part B (PCM and General Aptitude & Logical Reasoning)

NATA 2020 exam pattern and syllabus are significant for the candidates to plan an exam preparation schedule. Syllabus overview of Part A and Part B is as under -

NATA Exam Pattern — Exam-Day Instructions

Candidates must follow the below given guidelines related to NATA 2020 exam -

1. It is mandatory for the test takers to visit the test centre 30 minutes before the exam timing for biometric verification and other formalities
2. NATA admit card is a mandatory document without which candidates cannot get entry inside the examination hall
3. Stationery and electronic stuff like study notes, paper sheet, pencil or geometry box, log table, scale, calculator, electronic pen, pen drives, cell phones, pager, bluetooth device, writing pad, digital watch, slide rulers, water or oil colours, cardboard, crayons, etc. are restricted inside the test centre
4. Council appoints a proctor for candidates who opt to take the exam from their place of stay
5. Candidates appearing from their residence cannot open or browse any application in computer system during the exam hours
6. In case of any query or exam-related issue, test takers can take the guidance from the proctor or invigilator
7. Invigilator or proctor reserves the right to disqualify the candidates in case of any negligence or deviation from the guidelines or disturbance/misdemeanour inside the test hall
8. Exit from the test hall is not allowed before the completion of exam

Executing a smart study plan in sync with the exam pattern and syllabus will help the candidates inch closer towards success. Here are some tips that will optimize your preparation plan for NATA 2020.

1. Become conversant with NATA syllabus and exam pattern
2. Design a day-wise study timetable as per the days left for the exam
3. Practice mock tests to get acquainted with the exam pattern and Preferential Type Questions (PTQ)
4. Practice previous years’ question papers to mark questions that are repetitive in nature.
5. Focus on completing questions in a certain time frame. As per the revised exam pattern, there will be a sectional time limit for each of the two parts (72 minutes for Part A and 45 minutes for Part B) in the National Aptitude Test in Architecture

CoA releases the response sheet of NATA and makes it easier for candidates to check all the answers marked by them in the exam. The response sheet is available on NATA website and applicants need to enter their login credentials (application number or hall ticket number and password) to download it.

Council publishes the NATA answer key on its official website before the final result announcement. The answer key, along with the response sheet, facilitates the candidates to verify their answers and calculate their probable scores. The applicants must visit the website (nata.in) and download the answer key in PDF form. To calculate the probable score through the answer key, candidates must refer to the pre-defined marking scheme.

Note — Usually, the response sheets and answer sheets are uploaded only for Part B as Part A contains drawing-related questions. But, this year the authority is expected to provide response sheets and answer keys for both the parts.

Candidates can challenge the provisional NATA answer key in case of any error. CoA scrutinizes the objections raised by the candidates and releases the final answer key, which is further used for result evaluation.

NATA Phase I result will be declared by the Council on September 3, 2020. Candidates can check the result on the web portal of NATA (nata.in). Details like sectional and overall marks, qualifying status, etc. are clearly mentioned in the NATA result. The qualifying marks for Part A and Part B of exam are as under -

Candidates must qualify both the parts to clear the NATA exam. The Council will decide the overall qualifying score of NATA depending upon post-exam statistics. The validity of the NATA score is one year.

Note — CoA does not conduct any centralised counselling for NATA. Colleges have their own admission process. Candidates will be offered final admission on the basis of their NATA score.

NATA cut off score refers to the minimum marks required to qualify the exam. It is mandatory for the test takers to achieve sectional and overall cut off as set by CoA. Candidates must keep the track of the websites of different colleges for NATA cut off. Cut off will depend upon various parameters like -

1. Total number of applications
2. Total number of test takers
3. Category of the applicants
4. Availability of seats

Previous year’s cut off of some colleges are as under -

NATA — List of colleges accepting NATA Score

Institutes accepting NATA 2020 Click here to check the complete list of NATA participating institutes along with the seat intake capacity and other details

Originally published at https://exam.buddy4study.com on August 10, 2020.

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