Waitlist for a Closed Class

What Waitlists听Are

When a class is full,听departments may offer a waitlist to allow听non-enrolled students to get in line for the next available seat.听When automatic waitlist enrollment is active, the first eligible student on the waitlist is automatically enrolled as soon as anyone drops the class.

When you're on a waitlist, you aren't enrolled in the class; however, you do appear on the class roster and you have access to the online class materials until the waitlist cancellation date.

Although a waitlisted class's credit hours are included in your credit-load limit, they don't count toward your听academic or financial aid enrollment status听or appear on your听bill until you're enrolled.

When You Can Join One

Class waitlists are available听during the following times:

Your assigned enrollment dates (new听undergrads aren't allowed to waitlist for fall classes)
The schedule adjustment period (fall registration only)
The open enrollment period

How They Work

There are two types of waitlists:

Automatic waitlists听are first-come, first-served. When a seat becomes available in the class, the person who's been on the waitlist the longest听is automatically enrolled if they meet the eligibility criteria.
Resequenced waitlists听use a priority system to determine who is automatically enrolled when a seat becomes available. Priorities are established by the department and are usually based on the student's class standing and/or major.

How to Use Them

Once you've registered for your backup class (see note below),听follow the听steps below to join a waitlist and, if you'd like to, set up drop if enrolled at the same time.

Log in to听听and navigate to the closed class (class search instructions).
Select a section, if applicable.
Click "Add to Cart."
A pop-up will听confirm that you're adding the section to your cart. Click "OK."
In the registration options pane:
1. Select the grade mode, if applicable.
2. Set the waitlist drop-down to "Yes."
3. If you've registered for a backup class to drop if you're enrolled听from the waitlist, select the backup class from the drop-down.
4. Click "Save Changes."
The class should now appear听in your shopping cart with a blue cart icon.
To finish registering, click "Continue to Enrollment."
If there are classes in your cart that you don't want to add, untick the checkbox to the right of those classes.
Click "Submit Registration."

If it worked, you'll see a message confirming that you've been added to the waitlist. If it didn't, you'll see an error message; read the听description for details.

Note: If you join the waitlist first, and if your waitlisted and backup classes are听different sections of the same course, the听registration system will automatically drop听the waitlisted class when you enroll in your backup class.

Using classic registration instead?

Log in to听听and navigate to the closed class (class search instructions).
Select a section, if applicable.
Click "Add to Cart."
A pop-up will听confirm that you're adding the section to your cart. Click "OK."
In the registration options pane:
1. Select the grade mode, if applicable.
2. Set the waitlist drop-down to "Yes."
3. If you've registered for a backup class to drop if you're enrolled听from the waitlist, select the backup class from the drop-down.
4. Click "Save Changes."
The class should now appear听in your shopping cart with a blue cart icon.
To finish registering, click "Continue to Enrollment (Classic)."
If you land on a page telling you you've completed preregistration, click "Continue in Portal."
In the registration system, scroll down to the "CU Boulder听Shopping Cart" section听and tick the checkbox next to the waitlisted class.
Click "Add Selected Classes."
Confirm your selection(s), then click "Finish Enrolling."

If it worked, you'll see a message confirming that you've been added to the waitlist. If it didn't, you'll see an error message; read the听description for details.

Click the button below to view our expanded drop-if-enrolled information.

Learn how to set up drop if enrolled

To听gauge your likelihood of being enrolled from the waitlist, follow these steps to check your waitlist position:

Follow this link to Buff Portal's听听(you may be prompted to log in).
Select your waitlisted class to open the class details.
Under the "Status" heading, you'll听see the type of waitlist you're on, your position on the waitlist (if your position is 1,听you're at the top of the list), and the size of the class.

What to Do When You're on听a Waitlist

Attend听Your Waitlisted Class

If you're still on the waitlist when the semester starts, attend the first class meeting and tell the instructor you're on the waitlist. They may be able to advise you on the likelihood of being enrolled from the waitlist and whether to attend future class meetings.

Stay Enrollment Eligible

If you're at the top of the waitlist and a seat becomes available in the class, you have to meet the following criteria听for the registration system to enroll you:

You have no holds that prevent registration.
You aren't enrolled in a different section of the same class (unless you've set up drop if enrolled for that section).
You aren't enrolled in a class that has a time conflict with the waitlisted class (unless you've set up drop if enrolled for the conflicting class).
You meet the requirements of the class, such as having taken prior class sequences or corequisites.
Your enrollment would not put you over the maximum number of enrolled credits for your program (unless you've set up drop if enrolled for a class of听equal or greater credit value).

If a seat becomes available but you don't meet one or more of the criteria above, the registration system will skip you and enroll the first person after you who does.

If you're automatically enrolled from the waitlist, you'll receive an automated email confirmation within 24 hours. You will not receive an automated notification if you're manually enrolled by a CU Boulder staff member.

What Happens if You're Never Enrolled

Automatic听waitlist enrollment ends on听the second Wednesday of the semester in fall and spring (see the听add & drop calendar); summer waitlist deadlines vary (see the听Summer Session calendar). If a seat becomes available听after that date but before waitlists are canceled, contact the department offering the class to see if their policies allow them to manually enroll you from the waitlist.

After the third Friday of the semester, waitlists are canceled. If you still aren't enrolled in the class at that point, you'll lose access to online materials and be removed from the class roster. However, you may be eligible to use course reservation the next time the course is offered.

Learn 麻豆视频 Course Reservation

麻豆视频

Main menu