For the 12 p.c. quota for local students in National Institute of Fashion Technology in Hyderabad, hardly a seat or two get filled every year, says SWATHI V. 

They determine what the crème de la crème wear the next day. They toil behind the curtains to create the frills and ruffles that make up the second skin of the most featured personalities. They decide the flavour of each season in every fashion centre, be it a college or an upmarket lounge bar. Well, there should have been a mad rush to become what ‘they' are, but the sad part is that there isn't.

For the 12 per cent quota for local students in the National Institute of Fashion Technology here in Hyderabad, hardly a seat or two get filled up every year.

K.S. Pratap Kumar, the director of the institute himself admitted that there are not many applications from the State, and even fewer from the rural areas.

What the local students do not realise is that, in not considering NIFT as a career choice, they could be losing much more than mere fashion as a vocation. It is the exposure and the subsequent transformation in their attitude towards the world that they would be missing, which cannot ever be made up for in any engineering college or professional institution.

Major hindrance

A fee of upto Rs.52,000 per semester could be a major hindrance for many students who aim to join. However, there are scholarships and fee waivers, informs Mr. Kumar. “We are offering fee concession based on the candidate's family income.

The concession will be 25 per cent if the income is below Rs.3 lakh, 50 per cent if it is below Rs.2lakh, and 75 per cent if below Rs.1 lakh,” he said.

In addition, there will be scholarships for students from Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes. In the current year, three students were recommended for central scholarships from Union Ministry of Social Justice, Mr. Kumar informed.

Applications are being accepted for admission into two bachelor and three master programmes, namely Bachelor of Design (B.Des), Bachelor of Fashion Technology (B. FTech.), Master of Design(M.Des.), Master of Fashion Management(M.F.M.), and Master of Fashion Technology(M. FTech).

Any Plus Two from a recognised Board of Education will be accepted for B. Des., while Physics, Chemistry and Maths are mandatory in Plus Two for B. FTech.

Candidates with B.Sc. in Textile and Clothing, or Bachelors in Applied Arts(Fashion Design/Visual Communications/Graphic Design/Industrial Design/Interior Design/Multimedia Design/Product Design/Textile and Accessories), or B. Arch or Design Diploma or Degree from NIFT, National Institute of Design, or any other international university of repute, are eligible to apply for Master of Design.

Industry experience will be added qualification. For the M.F.M., any graduation from recognised university or Diploma in Accessory/Fashion Design from NIFT alone will suffice.

B.E. or B. Tech in Textiles/Apparel/Mechanical/Industria/Production/Electronics/Computers/ Information Technology will be required for M.FTech. A screening test will be conducted on February 21 for admission into all the 15 centres of NIFT across the country.

Application forms are available till January 5, 2010 and last date for submission of the form is January 9, 2010. For more details, one may visit the website www.nift.ac.in.