IGNOU DECE Admission 2026: Admission is open now for the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) course at IGNOU. IGNOU has started the admission process for the DECE courses, previously known as NTT, for the July academic session on 25 May 2026. IGNOU DECE admission last date is 13 October 2026, and students need to apply with a form fee of INR 300 after creating an APAAR ID. Admission eligibility is 10+2 or an equivalent qualification. Those students who meet this requirement can apply online. The application submission process must be completed online via the official Samarth portal @ignouadmission.samarth.edu.in before the deadline.
The full form is Diploma in Early Childhood Education programme. IGNOU DECE admission course fee is INR 3,000. Candidates have to pay an application fee of INR 300 at the time of admission. The Diploma in Early Childhood Care and Education program is a 1-year distance diploma course. The DECE course prepares students for preschools or daycare centres. They study subjects like Childhood Development, Health, Nutrition and Safety, Curriculum Planning, and Early Learning in Practice.
IGNOU DECE Admission 2026 Updates
- 13 October 2026 is the extended deadline to register for IGNOU DECE course admission 2026 via the official samarth portal for the July academic batch.
- IGNOU began accepting registration forms for admission to DECE courses for the July session, and the last date to register is 13 October 2026 via the official website. Source
IGNOU DECE Course Highlights
| DECE Full Form | Diploma in Early Childhood Care and Education |
| Program Type | Diploma |
| Duration | 1 Year |
| Fee | Rs 3,000/- |
| Eligibility | 10+2 or its equivalent |
| Age | No Limit |
| Language | English, Hindi, Tamil |
| Employment Areas | Academic Institutes, Anganwadis, Children’s Hospitals |
| Last Date | 13 October 2026 |
| Apply For Admission | IGNOU Admission |
| IGNOU Official Website | ignou.ac.in |
IGNOU DECE Admission 2026
The application form filling process is open now at IGNOU for the DECE course admission in the July session. Admission form has been released on 25 May 2026 for ECCE course admission at IGNOU on the official website @ignou.ac.in. The last date of IGNOU DECE admission 2026 has been extended till 13 October 2026. Admission eligibility requires a 12th pass or equivalent qualification. Candidates must submit an application fee of INR 300/- through the official admission portal.
Diploma in Early Childhood Care and Education is a one-year IGNOU course. This is a learning programme for learners who are working with students till 6 years of age. Students learn early childhood development and health skills. Subjects like Services and Programmes for Children teach how to foster the curiosity of children and help in learning about the world in a better and more enjoyable way.
IGNOU DECE course curriculum includes theoretical subjects and project work. For project work, students are required to conduct learning activities in a preschool for 30 days. IGNOU project submission date for DECE will be released near the term-end examination (TEE). To aid the learning of DECE students, IGNOU also gives periodic assignment work.
IGNOU DECE Admission Eligibility Criteria
To become eligible to apply for admission at IGNOU for the DECE course, students must have passed their 10+2 schooling from a recognised board. Students only need to pass the 12th-grade exams. There is no minimum mark required for admission to the DECE course at IGNOU. An equivalent degree like BPP or a diploma of the same level is also accepted for DECE IGNOU admission 2026. Students can complete their 12th from boards like Kerala Board, Jammu Board, Delhi Board, CBSE, ICSE, etc.
IGNOU DECE Course Fees
IGNOU provides admission to the Diploma in Early Childhood Care and Education with a fee of INR 3,000 to all eligible students. An application form of INR 300 also need pay while filling out the registration form. The ECCE course also has some additional IGNOU fees, like INR 200/- as the University Development Fee. It is paid to IGNOU during the DECE admission process to take care of the online admission systems.
Similarly, an extra amount of Rs 200/- per theory subject is to be paid to IGNOU as the DECE exam form fee. This fee is necessary to fill the DECE term-end examination.
| DECE Fee Structure 2026 | |
| DECE Course Fee | INR 3,000/- |
| Application Fee | INR 300/- |
| University Development Fee | INR 200/- |
| DECE Theory Exam Form Fee | INR 200/- |
| DECE Practical Exam Form Fee | INR 300/- |
IGNOU DECE Admission Process 2026
Indira Gandhi National Open University has commenced the registration process for admission into the July batch for the DECE/ECCE course through the official website. The applicants can complete the admission process online after creating ABC and DEB/APAAR by following these steps:
- Step 1: Go to the ODL Diploma admission portal 2026.
- Step 2: Make a new account by clicking “New Registration”.
- Step 3: Log in to the IGNOU admission portal with the new registered account.
- Step 4: Enter the details and start filling the IGNOU DECE application form.
- Step 5: Upload the documents that are required on the admission form. Pay the application fee.
- Step 6: Submit the IGNOU DECE admission form online. Keep the acknowledgement page saved in PDF format.
Documents Required
- Coloured Photograph
- Mark sheet of 12th class
- Diploma Certificate (if required)
- Scanned Signature
- Category Certificate (if required)
- Identification Cards like Aadhar and driving license
IGNOU DECE Offline Admission Process
- Step 1: Go to the nearest Regional Centre.
- Step 2: Contact the “Student Service Cell”.
- Step 3: Ask for the DECE IGNOU admission form.
- Step 4: Fill the form offline with all required information.
- Step 5: Attach the photocopies of the required documents.
- Step 6: Pay the application fee of INR 300/-.
- Step 7: Submit the form offline.
DECE IGNOU Course Details
After IGNOU DECE admission 2026, students can access the DECE syllabus. Primary objective of this course is to provide a better understanding of children’s development from birth to six years of age. It deals with the common health problems that infants and young children face. Students learn how to treat and prevent such problems and cases.
IGNOU teaches how to organise children’s learning environment and services. Planning of Children nutrition is an important part of IGNOU DECE syllabus. Additionally, students apply all this learning through a project work. DECE project submission is mandatory to pass this IGNOU Diploma course.
To help learn the course correctly, students can opt for IGNOU printed study materials. During the filling of the DECE application form, students must select the format in which they want to get the study material. They can choose either the printed or online study materials.
IGNOU DECE 2026 Syllabus
| Course code | Course Name | Credits |
| DECE-1 | Organizing Child Care Services | 8 |
| DECE-2 | Child Health and Nutrition | 8 |
| DECE-3 | Services and Programmes for Children | 8 |
| DECE-4 | Project Work: Working With Young Children in a Child Care Setting | 8 |
IGNOU DECE Course Assignment 2026
IGNOU gives assignments for DECE diploma courses. These assignments have questions that are selected by IGNOU in-house teachers. They select the question to keep the assignment engaging and enjoyable. It contains practical-based questions that compels students to think out of the box and apply theoretical learning in practical problems.Students can download after IGNOU DECE admission 2026 on the official IGNOU website @ignou.ac.in.
IGNOU opens the DECE assignment submission portal before the term-end examinations. Students who wish to appear in the IGNOU term-end exam (TEE) are required to submit their DECE assignments before the last day by visiting the university’s portal or nearby Regional and Study Center.
Weightage of the IGNOU DECE assignment is 30% in the final report card. DECE exam forms for the term end examinations are also released after the final submission of these assignments.
IGNOU Fee Refund Policy
Students can cancel their DECE admission. If the cancellation is made before a student is selected before the final selection is made, students will get 100% fee back. This can be done before 60 days have passed after the DECE admission. While students can get back their fee after 15% of DECE course fee fine. The maximum fine is up to INR 2000/-.
When the 60 days from the last day of DECE admission have passed, those students who have applied for a DECE fee refund will get no fee back.
| IGNOU DECE Fee Refund Policy 2026 | |
| Before confirmation of IGNOU DECE Admission | 100% fee refund |
| After Final List of Admission | 15% of fine on course fee |
| After 60 days | No refund |
How to get DECE Fee Refund
- Step 1: Open the candidate’s email account. Use the same registered account from which IGNOU DECE application process is completed.
- Step 2: Type the fee refund request in a mail.
- Step 3: Mention the enrollment number, name and course name (DECE).
- Step 4: Send the completed email to canceladms@ignou.ac.in.
- Step 5: IGNOU will process the email and start the refund process.
