<p>For clearing waitlists in classes that have a lecture plus discussion or lab sections, it is the discussion or lab section that really determines your position, not the number on the list for the lecture. </p>
<p>If you are #300 on the lecture list but #1 on the waitlist for your section and an opening comes up IN YOUR SECTION, you will be registered in the class, not the 299 people supposedly ahead of you.</p>
<p>The system tells you your position in both lecture and the discussion/lab section only when you first register, then all you get is the relatively useless lecture waitlist position. If you remember being in a very good position for that section with the bad time, that is an excellent situation. Anyone who finds a way to get into a better time will drop your section - someone moves in to a seat. Someone who hates the time may give up on the class - someone moves into a seat in that section. If your position on the waitlist for the discussion was less than 10% of the max section size, generally you will get in. Section of 25, you are 1 or 2, you will likely get in. If you are 5 or 6, not as rosy a picture but still could happen. </p>
<p>You really should attend the lab/dis for which you are waitlisted, since the GSI running that section can drop you if you are not attending. That is one way that the waitlist clears - someone doesn’t bother to show up, they remove that person, and you move ahead on the waitlist or move into an actual seat if the person who didn’t show up had a confirmed space. </p>
<p>Also, you are attending to keep up with the class thus when you cleared you are not behind on work. Each discussion/lab may be run on a slightly different schedule or customize what it does a bit, another good reason to go to the section you selected. </p>
<p>Telebears is a pretty simple system and not very malicious. It is the evil twin of Telebears, Screwthebears, that gives you your phase I and II appointments and it is also the one rumored to mangle the automatic clearing of waitlists each weekend. You met this system already, when decisions were released for Cal applicants. Remember how well it worked and how easy it was to log in? </p>
<p>No idea how your waitlist number could jump unless the department or instructor is managing the waitlist manually. If so, they can use any strategy they want to decide who gets in. If the class says the waitlist is processed manually, then finding and communicating with the coordinator who is managing the waitlist or the instructor of the class becomes more important. You want them to see you as another priority person to pull into this semesters class.</p>