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    99.85% of Applicants Didn't Make It to IIM Ahmedabad

    99.85% of Applicants Didn't Make It to IIM Ahmedabad

    Gursimran KaurUpdated on 15 Jun 2026, 04:37 PM IST

    2.68 lakh applications. 1,330 interview shortlists. 415 admissions. These are last year’s IIM Ahmedabad admission numbers, for the 2025-27 batch. Less than 0.5% of aspirants got IIM A calls and just 0.15% of applicants made it to the final class, while over 99.8% were left out. To put it simply, for every 1000 applicants, barely 1 or 2 made it to IIM Ahmedabad. Interestingly, over the last three years, the applications to IIM A have surged nearly 69%-from 1.59 lakh to a record 2.69 lakh, while the number of final offers has remained more or less the same, around 400. Here, we have analysed the last three admission cycles, which reveal how difficult it is to get into IIM Ahmedabad in 2026, how the competition intensified across categories, and what the actual chances of conversion at IIM Ahmedabad.

    This Story also Contains

    1. What the Numbers Reveal About IIM Ahmedabad Admissions?
    2. How Many Applicants Actually Make It to IIM Ahmedabad?
    3. IIM Ahmedabad Applicant Pool Crosses 2.68 Lakh
    4. Application-to-Admission Success Rate at IIM Ahmedabad/ Category-Wise Admission Odds at IIM Ahmedabad
    5. The Rising Competition for an IIM Ahmedabad Seat
    99.85% of Applicants Didn't Make It to IIM Ahmedabad
    99.85% of Applicants Didn't Make It to IIM Ahmedabad

    What the Numbers Reveal About IIM Ahmedabad Admissions?

    • Applications increased from 1.59 lakh to 2.69 lakh in three years.

    • Total Applicants (2025-27)- 2,68,594

    • Final admissions remained around 400 seats for the last three years, 415 for 2025-27.

    • In the last three years, the acceptance rate dropped from 0.256% to 0.154%.

    • Only 0.49% of applicants received a PI call in 2025-27.

    • General Category at a 0.10% success rate.

    • EWS applications recorded the fastest growth among major categories (+57.2%).

    How Many Applicants Actually Make It to IIM Ahmedabad?

    For the 2025-27 batch, a record 2,68,594 candidates applied for admission at IIM A, but only 1,330 were shortlisted for the Personal Interview (PI) round, and eventually, just 415 candidates secured a seat at the PGP program. This translates into a success rate of just 0.15%, meaning 99% of the candidates are not selected for admission at IIM A. The admission funnel also reveals that the biggest hurdle is securing a personal interview. In 2025-27, fewer than 0.5% of applicants received an interview call.


    Components/ Year

    2025-27

    2024-26

    2023-25

    Number of Applicants for IIM Ahmedabad

    2,68,594

    2,64,467

    1,58,958

    Number of Shortlisted candidates for PI

    1330

    1206

    789

    Candidates selected for the PGP program at IIM A

    415

    404

    408

    % of selected candidates from applications

    0.154

    0.152

    0.256

    Confused between CGPA and Percentage?

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    💡 Conversion Formula used is: Percentage = CGPA × 9.5

    IIM Ahmedabad Applicant Pool Crosses 2.68 Lakh

    The IIM Ahmedabad applicant pool expanded by 66,015 candidates in the last two admission cycles. While the General category continues to dominate the applicant pool, accounting for nearly 67% of all applications in 2025-27. The overall application pool for IIM A grew from 2.03 lakh in 2023-25 to 2.69 lakh in 2025-27, reflecting the increasing popularity of MBA education at IIM Ahmedabad.

    Category

    Number of Applicants at IIM Ahmedabad via CAT & GMAT

    2025-27

    2024-26

    2023-25

    General

    179180

    176614

    137909

    EWS

    14370

    13975

    9141

    NC-OBC

    47052

    46011

    33799

    SC

    21361

    21163

    16377

    ST

    5497

    5597

    4480

    PwD

    1100

    1092

    868

    Overseas Indian Category (GMAT)

    15

    3

    1

    Supernumerary Quota (GMAT)

    19

    12

    4

    Total Candidates

    2,68,594

    2,64,467

    2,02,579

    Application-to-Admission Success Rate at IIM Ahmedabad/ Category-Wise Admission Odds at IIM Ahmedabad

    General category candidates face the toughest competition at IIM Ahmedabad with a success rate of only 0.10% in 2025-27. This means roughly one out of every 950 general candidates joins IIM A for PGP. In comparison, the reserved category candidates have a slightly higher admission percentage due to category-wise reservation and seat allocation.

    Category

    2025-27

    2024-26

    2023-25

    Applications

    Joinees

    %

    Applications

    Joinees

    %

    Applications

    Joinees

    %

    General

    179180

    189

    0.10

    176614

    189

    0.11

    137909

    187

    0.14

    EWS

    14370

    20

    0.13

    13975

    9

    0.06

    9141

    9

    0.10

    NC-OBC

    47052

    103

    0.22

    46011

    101

    0.22

    33799

    101

    0.30

    SC

    21361

    57

    0.27

    21163

    56

    0.26

    16377

    59

    0.36

    ST

    5497

    30

    0.55

    5597

    29

    0.52

    4480

    36

    0.80

    PwD

    1100

    16

    1.45

    1092

    20

    1.83

    868

    16

    1.84

    Total

    268594

    415

    0.15

    264467

    404

    0.15

    202579

    408

    0.20

    The Rising Competition for an IIM Ahmedabad Seat

    Although OIC and SNQ categories show very high percentage growth, the actual applicant numbers remain small. EWS applications recorded the highest growth among major categories at 57.2% over three years.

    Category

    2023-25 Applicants

    2025-27 Applicants

    Increase in Number of Applications in the last 3 years

    Growth percentage of applications

    General

    137,909

    179,180

    41,271

    +29.9%

    EWS

    9,141

    14,370

    5,229

    +57.2%

    NC-OBC

    33,799

    47,052

    13,253

    +39.2%

    SC

    16,377

    21,361

    4,984

    +30.4%

    ST

    4,480

    5,497

    1017

    +22.7%

    PwD

    868

    1,100

    232

    +26.7%

    OIC

    1

    15

    14

    +1400%

    SNQ

    4

    19

    15

    +375%

    The numbers are saying it all. Getting into IIM Ahmedabad in 2026 is not going to be about just securing that 99+ percentile in CAT 2026, but more about standing out when thousands have similar CAT scores. If you are aiming for IIM A then ask yourself, are you preparing merely to get a high CAT 2026 score or to be among the few who get IIM A calls.

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