Sometimes even hard work and dedicated preparation is not enough to get many candidates through into an IIM. It is not a reflection of the candidate, however. There are a very small amount of seats, so many deserving candidates are forced to look at other alternatives. Sometimes, even 99 percentile students do not get a call letter. If you are one of those candidates, here are some things to consider - 

Attempt a different management entrance exam:

The best thing about management exams is that there are so many of them, all offering admissions to various different colleges. If you have the aptitude for MBA, then some of these colleges can prove to be even better options than the very revered IIMs. Some of the colleges offer very good placement packages, and other benefits as well. Here is a short list of Exams to consider - 

• XAT
• CMAT
• GMAT
• SNAP
• IIFT
• KMAT, etc.

Look at other Private Management Colleges:

Another advantage of the CAT exam is that several different colleges also accept the scores. No matter what your score is, some college will offer you admission. If you have otherwise excellent credentials, you might be able to get into a really good private management college as well. 

Try again, next year:

Experience is a really good thing, and your experience of attempting CAT is invaluable. Now you are probably aware where you are lacking or have trouble, perhaps it is time, or perhaps it is accuracy. Either way, you have plenty of time to work on it and give a much better attempt in the next exam cycle for CAT. You might even be more confident this time. 

Try a different route:

If giving this exam has given you the realisation that it is not the direction you want to go again, you can try attempting a different exam. Plenty of Government exams are conducted throughout the year, with varying levels of difficulty and competition. One of the biggest advantages is that you can directly start working in a public service post, and the advantages of that are not lost on anyone. A list of exams you can look into is as follows: 

• Banking Exams: IBPS PO, SBI PO, IBPS Clerk, LIC AAO (Assistant Administrative Officer), RBI Grade B
• UPSC/State PSC
• UPSC Indian Engineering Services (IES Exam)
• SSC Combined Graduate Level Exam (SSC CGL)
• UPSC Combined Defence Services Exam (CDS)
• Air Force Common Aptitude Exam (AFCAT Exam)
• Indian Navy Entrance Test (INET Exam)
• Territorial Army Exam (Officer Entry)
• RRB - RRB ALP Exam ( Assistant Loco Pilot), RRB NTPC Exam (Non-Technical Popular Categories), RRB MI Exam (Ministerial and Isolated Categories), RRB JE Exam (Junior Engineer),RRB Paramedical Exam

It is not the end of the world:

Remember, just because you were not able to put forward your best effort in this exam does not mean that it reflects on who you are as a person. Always emphasise your self worth and more forward to do better.