NATA 2026

The National Aptitude Test in Architecture is conducted by the Council of Architecture, the statutory body that regulates architectural education and practice in India. A valid NATA score is mandatory for admission to the five-year Bachelor of Architecture programme at every CoA-approved institution, and the test is accepted by government, private and deemed institutions across the country. NATA is unlike an engineering or medical entrance test. It does not reward recall. The paper measures the aptitudes that architectural training actually draws on: the ability to observe and reproduce proportion, to visualise in three dimensions, to compose form and colour, and to reason logically about space. Drawing and Composition alone carries 80 of the 200 marks, which makes sustained sketching practice as important as any theory revision. The test is offered over an extended window rather than on a single day. For 2026 the Council scheduled Phase 1 across every Friday and Saturday from 4 April to 13 June, with an additional Phase 2 on 7 and 8 August. Candidates may take up to two attempts in Phase 1 and the best score is used to compute the final percentile. There is no negative marking, so every question is worth attempting.