You can enable the system to open a Waitlist for an event after the limit for the number of volunteers has been reached instead of closing registration. Waitlists can be enabled on Normal or Time Slot Events, but not on Service Projects.
When a volunteer is added to the Waitlist, the system will record their position in a first come, first served order. Then, if a volunteer cancels his/her registration or if you expand the number of volunteers needed, the system will add volunteers from the waitlist to the event until the remaining positions have been filled*. When a volunteer is added to an event from a Waitlist, they immediately receive the confirmation email for the event, so you do not need to notify them, and if they need to cancel, they can do so directly from the confirmation message as long as this is enabled in your system.
* Important note: If spots open up on the day of the event, the Waitlist is turned off, and volunteers will not automatically be moved from it. However, you can always register volunteers from the administrative side before or after the event.
To enable a Waitlist for an existing event, follow the instructions below:
- Login to your CERVIS Account.
- Click on the Search / Manage Existing Opportunities link under the “Opportunity Management” section of the Main Dashboard.
- Search for the event that you would like to update.
- Click the icon to the left of the event name to Update / Edit Opportunity.
- Locate the Allow Waitlist When Registration is Full option and set this to ‘Yes’.
- Click the Update Opportunity button at the bottom of the page.
To view the Waitlist for an event, follow the instructions below:
- Login to your CERVIS Account.
- Click on the Search / Manage Existing Opportunities link under the “Opportunity Management” section of the Main Dashboard.
- Locate the event for which you would like to view the Waitlist.
- Click on the Register Volunteers/Groups icon (
) to the left of the event name.
- Volunteers who are on the Waitlist will appear on the list with the other registered volunteers. They will be listed with an annotation that they have been waitlisted along with their position on the Waitlist (Example: Waitlist: #1 of 5).
Note that if you register a volunteer from the admin side of CERVIS, they will be assigned their proper place on the Waitlist just as if they had registered themselves. You can change the order of the Waitlist, if needed, by clicking the arrow (
) icon next to the waitlisted volunteer in the Registration Management menu.
If you need to bypass the Waitlist to directly register new volunteers for the event, you can disable the Waitlist while you create more slots, and then add the volunteers to the event. When you turn the Waitlist back on, it will restore the list to the order that it was previously.