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Waitlisting & Swapping

Waitlisting & Swapping

Waitlists

Once a class is closed, you can add your name to the waitlist using Albert. If one of the students who is registered for the closed course drops it, the first person on the waitlist is automatically enrolled and all other students on the waitlist advance one position.

Important: Before adding your name to a course waitlist, you should also learn about the SWAP feature (in some cases you will need to waitlist through the SWAP tab on Albert to avoid registration issues.)

The Waitlist Policy

Adding your name to a course waitlist does not guarantee enrollment.

After a certain period (see below) course waitlists are deactivated for the term. If you have not been able to enroll in your waitlisted course by the time the waitlists have been deactivated, it is no longer an option for the term and it will not appear on your schedule.

Fall and spring waitlists are deactivated; the last day of the second week of classes, (the last day Albert is available for registration for the term.)
Summer waitlists are deactivated the last day Albert is available for registration for the session

If you plan to add your name to a course waitlist please be aware that:

Not all courses offer a waitlist option.The department offering the class will determine if, and when, a waitlist is activated for a class. (Albert will notify you if a waitlist is not available for a course.)
Waitlists may become full. If a waitlist becomes full, you will receive an error message and you will not be able to add your name to it. ** Some students have reported an erroneous message that prompts them to obtain a permission number. If you receive this error message when you attempt to add your name to a waitlist, and you will need to keep checking to see if a space becomes available on the waitlist. The department will not issue a permission number.
You may need to use the SWAP feature to add yourself to the waitlist. Some situations require that you use the SWAP function when you waitlist for a course. To prevent registration issues, you will need to waitlist through the SWAP tab instead of selecting the waitlist option during the enrollment process.

Adding your Name to a Course Waitlist

If a waitlist is available for a course

Albert will give you the option to select the Wait List check-box during the enrollment process. If a position becomes available, you will be enrolled provided you meet the following requirements for enrollment off a course waitlist:

1. You meet the class requisites. You will not be enrolled if you have not met the class requisites.

2. You do not have any registration holds on your record. You will not be enrolled if you have any registration holds on your record.

3. There isn’t a time conflict between the waitlisted course and a course you are currently enrolled in. You will not be enrolled in a class if it conflicts in meeting times with another class in which you are currently enrolled. You can use the SWAP feature to avoid enrollment issues off the waitlist due to a time conflict. (See details on the SWAP feature below)

4. Enrollment in the waitlisted course will not put you above your unit limit for the term. You will not be enrolled in more units than you were cleared for in a given term. You can use the SWAP feature to avoid enrollment issues off the waitlist due to your unit limit. (See details on the SWAP feature below)

Monitoring your Position on the Waitlist

From the Enroll tab in your Student Center, select My Class Schedule to see all courses for which you are enrolled and waitlisted; you will also see your position on the waitlist.

During the first weeks of fall and spring classes students make quite a few changes to their schedules and there is a lot of movement on the waitlists; you should check your schedule often during this time and make appropriate adjustments.

Removing your Name from a Waitlist

If you no longer wish to enroll in a waitlisted course, you can remove your name from the waitlist by dropping the course from your schedule; select Drop from the Enroll tab in your Student Center.

The SWAP function

When you want to replace one class on your schedule with another, the SWAP function is a way to ensure that the class you want to remove from your schedule is not dropped until you are successfully enrolled in the class that you want to add.

The SWAP function and Its Connection to the Waitlists

If you add your name to a course waitlist and a position in the class opens up you will not be enrolled in the course if:

It conflicts in meeting times with another class in which you are currently enrolled.
The units from the course will put you above your unit limit for the term.

To prevent registration issues with time conflicts and unit limits, you should use the SWAP function to waitlist for a course instead of selecting the waitlist option during the enrollment process. Using the SWAP will ensure that you are not “skipped over” when a position in the class opens up.

When to Use the SWAP function

It is not always necessary for you to use the SWAP function to waitlist for a course. Unless the waitlisted course will create a time conflict or unit load issue, you can select the waitlist option on the Class Preferences screen when you initially attempt to add the course to your schedule.

However, if you realize there may be an issue with your unit load or a time conflict, you should consider waitlisting through the SWAP tab.

If you do SWAP, make sure you do not choose to swap a class that you actually want. If you become enrolled in the waitlisted course, the course you chose to swap will be dropped from your schedule.

Important:
You cannot apply the SWAP feature after you have already added your name to a course waitlist. If you need to swap classes, you must SWAP and waitlist within the same process by using the SWAP tab. Therefore it is important to determine if you need to swap before you begin the registration process.

If you do not waitlist through the SWAP tab and later realize that you will in fact need to swap a course in order to become enrolled in the waitlisted one, you must remove your name from the waitlist and re-add it through the SWAP tab. If this happens, more than likely, you will lose your original position on the waitlist and decrease your chances of becoming enrolled in the course.

How to SWAP

1. Log on to your Student Center on Albert.
2. Select the Enroll tab.
3. Click the SWAP tab.
4. Select the course from your schedule that can be dropped.
5. Enter the Class Number of the preferred class.
6. In some cases, Waitlist for the preferred class.
7. Finish Swapping

(see pages 9-11 of the Albert Registration Help Guide for instructional screen-shots)

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Confused about SWAP?

Use this handy quick step guide!

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