The National Institute of Design in Ahmedabad has made “unprecedented” policy changes in the middle of its already-delayed admissions process for the Bachelor of Design (BDes) course.

The institute, funded by the Union commerce ministry, has switched the weightage of the two components of its Design Aptitude Test (DAT) through which students are admitted.

As per the prospectus, the students’ performance in the written preliminary round would get 30 per cent weightage, while the mains and interview round would get 70 per cent weightage.

However, according to a revised policy uploaded on the institute’s website last week, 70 per cent weightage will now be given to the preliminary round score and 30 per cent to the mains and interview section.

The results of the preliminary round were to be declared on March 19, but were published in the first week of May.

Besides changing the weightage policy, the institute also made it mandatory for applicants to submit samples of their creative work and a statement of purpose. There had been no such requirement earlier.

Because of the delay in the admission process and the abrupt changes, many parents fear that they might have to educate their wards at private institutions at much higher fees.

“The private colleges are through with their admissions. Since the NID admission process is still on, many parents have got their children admitted to private institutions. If we can withdraw our wards now from the private institutes, we will get a refund. But if the NID process drags on further, we will not get any refund (as private institutes have a cut-off period for withdrawals),” a parent said.

Private institutions charge around Rs 6 lakh per annum for the four-year BDes course. The annual course fee at NID is Rs 2.10 lakh.

“The sudden change in rules is unprecedented, arbitrary and unethical,” another parent said.

NID offers BDes programmes in animation film design, ceramic and glass design, exhibition design, film and video communication, interior design, graphic design, product design and textile design.

The Telegraph sent an email to the NID director, Prof. Praveen Nahar, asking why the institute had made changes to its admission procedure and whether stakeholders, including applicants, had been consulted.

Rekha Nair, the NID registrar, said in an email response: “Wrt (with regard to) your email to the Director sent early today, we have to state the following: In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic circumstances, necessary changes in the admission process have been communicated to the applicants. All amendments and notifications are available at the Admissions website.”