The Waitlist feature in Absorb LMS allows Learners to hold a place in a full Instructor Led Course (ILC) Session and be automatically enrolled when a seat becomes available. This article covers how to configure a Waitlist for a new or existing Session, what the experience looks like for Learners, and how Admins can monitor and manage Waitlist activity through the ILC Sessions Report.

How Waitlists Work

When a Session reaches its Max Class Size, Absorb LMS can either block further enrollment or place Learners on a Waitlist, depending on how the Session is configured. When a seat opens, the system automatically enrolls the next Learner from the Waitlist on a first-come, first-served basis. Admins can override capacity at any time by manually enrolling a Learner directly into the Session, which bypasses Waitlist rules.

Waitlists are configured at the Session level, not the ILC level. Each Session within an ILC can have its own Waitlist settings. For general information on ILC enrollment options, see the Overview of Instructor Led Course (ILC) Settings article.

Enabling a Waitlist

A Waitlist can be enabled when creating a new Session or added to an existing one. Both workflows are outlined below.

Enable a Waitlist on a New Session

Follow these steps to configure a Waitlist while creating a new ILC Session. Waitlists are enabled on a per Session basis, with the below steps being applicable whether you're adding a Session to a new ILC or an existing ILC.

1. In the Admin Experience (AE), navigate to the Courses Report from the Courses tab on the left.
   
    
2. Click Add Instructor Led in the Actions menu on the right. The Add Instructor Led Course page opens.
   
    
3. Expand the Sessions tab and click Add Session. The Add Session modal opens.
   
    
4. In the modal, expand the Enrollment tab.
   
    
5. Toggle Enable Waitlist to ON.
6. Set the Expiration time in hours. The default value is 24 hours before the Session's start time. You can enter any value between 0 and 168 hours.
   
    
7. Complete the remaining Session settings and click Save.
8. Click Publish to save your changes to the ILC.

Enable a Waitlist on an Existing Session

Follow these steps to add a Waitlist to a Session that has already been created.

1. In the Admin Experience, navigate to the Courses Report from the Courses tab on the left.
   
    
2. Select the Instructor Led Course you want to update.
3. Click Edit in the Actions menu on the right.
   
    
4. Navigate to the Sessions section.
5. Select the Session you want to update.
6. Click the pencil icon next to the Session time. The Edit Session modal opens.
   
    
7. Scroll down to the Enrollment tab and expand it.
   
    
8. Toggle Enable Waitlist to ON.
9. Set the Expiration time in hours. You can enter any value between 0 and 168 hours.
   
    
10. Click Save to close the Sessions modal.
11. Click Publish to save your changes.

Waitlist Expiration

The Waitlist Expiration setting controls how long a Waitlist remains active relative to a Session's start time. Understanding this behavior is important for ensuring Learners are enrolled or notified before training begins.

A Waitlist expires at whichever of the following occurs first: the configured expiration time before the Session start, or the Session's Enrollment End Date. The default expiration is 24 hours before the Session starts, but this can be set anywhere from 0 to 168 hours (one week) in advance.

The following behaviors apply once a Waitlist has expired:

• No new Learners can be added to the Waitlist.
• Existing Waitlist Learners will not be moved into the Session, even if another Learner cancels.
• The list of Learners who were on the Waitlist is retained in the system indefinitely.
• Changing the expiration time after a Waitlist has expired will not affect existing enrollments. The system honors the settings that were active at the time of expiration.

Learner Experience

When a Learner attempts to enroll in a full Session that has a Waitlist enabled, they are placed on the Waitlist rather than receiving an enrollment error. The following describes what the Learner will experience.

Waitlist Notifications

Upon being added to a Waitlist, the Learner receives a system message and an email confirming their Waitlist placement, provided the Waitlist message template is enabled in the Message Templates menu. The email includes details such as the Course name, Session location, Session start date, and the Waitlist expiry date.

If the Waitlist expires before the Learner is moved into the Session, they will receive the Session Full email. The Learner remains enrolled in the ILC and can view other available Sessions to select from.

Both of these Messages can be customized via the Message Templates report.

Waitlist Status in the Learner Experience

When a Learner is on a Waitlist, their enrollment status is displayed as On Waitlist in the LMS. When navigating to the ILC, the Learner will see a banner indicating their current Waitlist position. This status also appears in the Enrollments Report and User Transcripts.

Admin Management

Admins and Instructors can view and manage Waitlist activity directly from the ILC Sessions Report. The tools available allow Admins to adjust Learner priority, promote Learners into a Session, send messages, or remove Learners from the Waitlist.

Viewing the Waitlist

The Waitlist for a Session can be accessed from two locations within the AE: directly from the ILC Sessions Report, or through the Manage Grades and Attendance workspace.

To view the Waitlist from the ILC Sessions Report:

1. In the Admin Experience, navigate to Reports and select ILC Sessions.
   
    
2. Select the Session you want to review.
3. Click View Waitlist from the Actions menu on the right.
   
    

The Waitlist Report displays each Learner's first name, last name, Username, date added to the Waitlist, and their current priority. By default, all Learners are assigned a priority of zero, meaning enrollment order determines promotion sequence.

Waitlist Actions

After selecting a Learner in the Waitlist Report, the following actions become available in the Actions menu on the right.

 

ILC Waitlist Override Permission

The ILC Waitlist Override permission allows eligible Admins to enroll a Learner directly into a Session that would otherwise place the Learner on a Waitlist. This permission does not change how Learners interact with Waitlists and does not modify any existing enrollment rules.

This permission is configured at the role level under the Enrollments section and appears below Enroll Anyone. It is enabled by default for several standard Administrator roles and can be applied to custom roles through manual configuration.

When the permission is disabled, Admins must follow standard Waitlist rules and cannot bypass capacity constraints when enrolling Learners.

Waitlists and E-Commerce

When selling an ILC through E-Commerce, it is important to configure a Waitlist for any Session held at a Venue with a fixed physical capacity. Without a Waitlist configured alongside the Require Learner to Choose Session setting, it is possible to oversell a Session beyond its available space.

To configure Waitlists for an E-Commerce ILC:

1. In the Admin Experience, navigate to the Courses Report from the Courses tab and select Add Instructor Led, or open an existing ILC and click Edit.
2. Expand the Enrollment Rules tab and toggle Enable E-Commerce to ON.
3. Toggle Require Learner to Choose Session to ON. When enabled, Learners must select an available Session before completing their purchase. If no Sessions with available seats exist, the ILC cannot be purchased.
   
    
4. Ensure each Session has a Waitlist enabled, following the steps in the Enabling a Waitlist section above.

Reporting on Waitlist Activity

The ILC Sessions Report includes several data columns that help Admins monitor Waitlist activity across Sessions without navigating into each one individually.

For more information about the ILC Sessions Report and its available columns, see the ILC Sessions Report article. For information about Session enrollment from the Learner's perspective, see ILC Session Enrollment.