Waitlist Logic and How it Works for Programs

How the Waitlist Works

• The waitlist allows applicants to sign up for a waitlist on any interview day on which you have the waitlist enabled.
• The waitlist will automatically notify an applicant when an eligible spot becomes available to them (i.e. a spot with the right scheduling group/tier combination). Depending on the type of waitlist (pooled or ordered), the applicant will be notified with the specific details of the event opening.
• The waitlist is only available to applicants who have been invited to interview by your program within Thalamus. Program must invite applicants for them to access any event waitlist.
• Applicants can sign up for as many waitlist days as they would like and are not removed from other waitlists if they sign up for an interview day. Once their interview day is complete, applicants will automatically be removed from other waitlists for that same type of event (i.e. first interview, second interview, etc). 

What Happens if I Disable my Waitlist After Applicants are Scheduled for the Waitlist

Programs have the ability to turn off your event waitlists globally (for all events by default) or by individual calendar event.

• This will prevent new applicants from signing up for the waitlist on the disabled date(s).

• Any applicants already on the waitlist will not be notified that the list has been disabled, and they will maintain their position on the waitlist.

• Notifications of an open spot will not go out to applicants on the waitlist once it has been disabled.

• If viewing the calendar, applicants will be able to see that the waitlist has been disabled based on the corresponding calendar icon.

Creating New Spots with Enabled Waitlist

When new spots are created for an interview event with an enabled waitlist, the waitlist will automatically notify an applicant when an eligible spot becomes available to them (i.e. a spot with the right scheduling group/tier combination). This could mean that newly invited applicants will not be able to the newly created spots as the ordered waitlist type will “hold” positions for applicants on the existing waitlist.

Creating New Spots and Avoiding Waitlist Notifications

To create new spots and prevent waitlist notifications from being sent to applicants on the existing waitlist, the program should disable the waitlist for the event and manually remove applicants from the waitlist. Applicants will not be notified that their spot on the waitlist has been cancelled and this will not remove the applicant from any additional waitlists.

Using a “Master Waitlist”

Programs may choose to use a single “master waitlist” to track their applicants and offer available spots. These are the basic steps below:

1. Keep a master waitlist outside of Thalamus

2. Import waitlisted applicants into Thalamus or at the time you wish to invite: Import Applicants & Data into Thalamus

3. Tag waitlisted applicants with a specific tag: Assign & Remove Tags from an Applicant

4. If cancellations occur, invite the top person on your waitlist.  Once they have notified you of their acceptance, manually schedule them into the open slot, force assign if needed: Manually Scheduling an Applicant for Interview

5. Be sure calendar settings are set up correctly if not manually scheduling (waitlists should be turned off globally): Calendar Settings Overview