@lbf, my son never had trouble getting into classes that he needed. There are definitely times he had to go on a waitlist, and even though he his place was in the high teens, he still got in. So, let me clarify that a little more. Being on a waitlist may seem hopeless for several weeks as the list will not start to “move” until a few weeks before the semester begins when people re-evaluate their schedules and decide to drop one class for another. So, while it may seem hopeless to be number 18 for 8 weeks over the summer, by August, hope returns as you begin to see your waitlist position get closer to target and then finally get in.
FYI, there are 3 types of classes - the big lectures with 1 small discussion section a week, the medium size classes (which may or may not have a small discussion section), and then small.
The big lectures tend to be the basic foundation classes that multiple majors require. For those, they will add more sections if the waitlist gets large enough. You can waitlist multiple sections, and you will be placed in the first one where a seat opens. However, you cannot waitlist a section for a “better” time/prof if you already took a seat in a section. So, you just need to be sure that you only sign up for a section you are willing to take, and if there is one you prefer, you can play chicken with waitlisting or just grab the seat in the section that’s open.
The medium size classes (around 40-60) that are ELECTIVES will not open additional sections, but again, waitlisting is possible. If it’s a really popular class, then you may not get it and will just have to try again another semester.
There are also small classes, such as ENGL101, which ensure that students get more individual attention. Even though that is a small class, since it is a required class, they will def open up additional sections if they run out of seats. However, the small classes that are the honors college seminars (so the really cool electives) and upper level electives will not open up additional sections.
SoofDad is correct that they do “reserve” seats for incoming freshman and only release them -some at each orientation session.
So, has my son ever not gotten a class he’s wanted? He never had a problem getting the classes that are required for his major. The very few (as in literally one or two) he didn’t get into were the highly popular electives for GenEds but there were lots of other options available, so he just took his second choice, and was able to get everything in he needed.
Further, my son is a sloth. So, for him, selecting classes was a balancing act of finding profs he wanted at the times he wanted. For his freshman year, his earliest class was 10 a.m. so clearly, getting the classes he wanted really was no problem. However, I will say he had signed up for one of the earliest orientation sessions, which likely helped. AFTER the first semester, students are given enrollment times based on number of credits, so it is possible that a freshman with a lot of incoming AP credits may actually register before a sophomore that has none.
In 8 semesters, there were a total of only 4 classes that he “had” to take at 8 a.m. because that was the only time the class was offered…2 were for his major, and 2 were electives.