My review of Carleton University has nothing to do with academics, as I never attended this university. I was recently here to attend my friend's hockey game at Carleton Ice House, so my review is about setting foot on campus for the first time as a visitor. Getting to Carleton Ice House from my hotel in east Ottawa was straightforward. What I find to be a bold move is that there is a roundabout on campus. University Drive runs east-west at first, but you take the roundabout to continue on this street to head north-south. Nothing like messing with prospective students who are trying to do a campus tour and have to deal with a crazy roundabout perhaps for the first time. Same goes with first-year students who have enough to deal with that a roundabout may be intimidating to them, causing them to avoid it at all costs and yearn for a normal intersection. I frankly like roundabouts. They are efficient. I find them enjoyable because I grew up in a non-roundabout community. It was a pleasant surprise using one here. Ottawa, in general, has its parking act together, compared to some major Canadian cities. You pay for parking with an app at any parking lot on campus. You can either download the app (I'd recommend it if you are here often) or use the browser on your phone if you are an infrequent visitor like me. It works. It's efficient. I had a great experience using it to park. The Carleton Ice House is a wonderful hockey facility. It took me by surprise that it houses two NHL-sized ice rinks. It was great taking in a few games, including my friend's hockey game that I came to see. It is a state-of-the-art hockey facility with a sports therapy clinic. My friend and I had dinner at Lansdowne Park after his game. It was ridiculously close by. I liked my brief visit to this university. It has a nice balance of parks and buildings. It's also cool that the university is bounded to the north by the Rideau Canal and Dow's Lake, and to the south by the Rideau River. It was nice getting a brief introduction to the university while I was on vacation. It was totally unplanned and a pleasant surprise! I doubt that I'd ever get a doctorate degree here, but never say never, as the saying goes. (248) read more

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I worked at Carleton for 2 years. People there used lies and gaslighting on me for the whole time. My supervisor never stood up for me. Despite that I had excellent reviews and 2 of the 3 people I supported agreed to be references for me. I went off on sick leave, and when I was able to return, they had reorganized the office and eliminated my position. A coworker told me that they actually created 3 full time positions to cover the work I had been doing. HR told me there were no equivalent positions and I would have to take a lower paying job. Then they offered me off with a paltry payout to leave their employment. I admit I agreed to take it and never return, but that was due to the fact that they said the offer was no longer available if I left the meeting. I should have consulted a lawyer. My fault. HORRIBLE place to work! read more

I was an undergraduate student at Carleton from 2004-2008. I graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Honours in Psychology, and a Minor in Sexuality Studies. I was one of two students to graduate first with the Sexuality Studies Minor, since my graduating year was its first year. It's a really awesome, interesting, informative, and comprehensive program, and I'd definitely recommend taking at least a course or two within this program. The student population is quite diverse and absolutely welcomes and supports all ethnicities, sexes, genders, sexualities, religions, cultures, ages, abilities, and walks of life. When I was applying to universities in Grade 12, I knew that I wanted to go to Ottawa. My two main options were Carleton University or the University of Ottawa. Now, at the time, I hadn't really researched either too in-depth, but I had attended a couple of university fairs and I was leaning towards Carleton. When I checked out the programs, I decided to only apply to Carleton, as there was nothing at Ottawa U that really appealed to me. When I found out that a lot of my friends from Ottawa were also choosing Carleton over Ottawa U, I thought, "Well, that obviously says something about Ottawa U". I lived in the Prescott House residence in my first year. Frosh was a blast, and they really get you chanting about how much you hate Ottawa U haha The rooms in Prescott were nice and clean, and this res building was much newer than the others. After taking an interest and personality survey, they matched me with amazing suite mates and a great group of people on my floor. I couldn't have been happier with where I lived and with whom. The campus itself is further away from downtown, but pretty scenic nonetheless. It's located along the Rideau River, which is really great for walks and quieter places to post up while doing some reading. The cafeteria, food court, restaurants, and pubs on campus are all quite good. Oliver's aka Ollies is really popular, but for more of a mellow vibe, I prefer Mike's Place, as do most professors and graduate students. Another big deal at Carleton is the Ravens men's basketball team, which are well-known champions and have quite the following. The games are really fun to go to and help build your team/Carleton spirit, even if you're not into basketball. The Physical Recreation Centre (PRC) is also really popular, as it's one of the largest multi-purpose facilities in Canada. The classes are a bit of a toss up, like any other undergraduate institution. You have your wacky profs, those you simply can't understand, those that don't seem to care at all, and those that you remember for the rest of your life, for whatever reason. I had some pretty terrible ones, but I also had a lot of really great ones. When the prof seems to be more passionate about teaching and their work, it shows a lot more in how they present the course material and how they interact with the students. Not to name drop or anything, but if you have the chance to take a class with any of these profs, DO IT: Chris Motz, Dan Irving, Alia Offman, and Joanna Pozzulo. These professors made the biggest impact on my education, career, and life. Also, even if you've heard it being called "Last Chance U", don't be fooled - a lot of people get scholarships their first year, but lose it the next, so work as hard as you play. I believe last year, in 2010, it was actually ranked 10th in Canada, above Ottawa U, Queen's, and Waterloo. I'd also quickly like to mention a few random things. The tunnel system at Carleton is phenomenal. People tend to forget about what a great amenity it is.. until winter comes along. When it's cold and windy outside, take the underground tunnels! The shuttle bus to and from Ottawa U is also great. It's free for students, teachers, and staff. It only runs about once an hour, every 40 minutes or so, but it only takes 20 minutes per ride if you're not in a hurry. And for all of you newbies out there, make sure to check out when the deadlines for bursaries are, because if you apply, there's a really big chance you'll get one, and it's basically free money to help out your student life and student budget, so why not? Also, at the beginning of the year, if you are under your parents' or your own work insurance, opt-out of the one that Carleton charges you for. You'll be able to get a decent amount of money back that you paid for, but don't need. read more

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Fourth year engineering student. Great engineering program, with a very active student community; if something interests you, you can find people that share your interests. read more

Had to stop by the old alma mater to get some books from the library for my upcoming classes and I still think this is one of the most gorgeous campuses I have ever been to. There's lots of green space and trees, the river on one side and canal on the other. The tunnels came in really handy too what with the 4th winter that decided to descend upon Ottawa this past week and all. Unlike some other tunnel systems (I'm looking at you Toronto) Carleton makes it really easy to navigate with large obvious signs identifying entrances to buildings and maps all over the place to help get around. The maps are really clear to identify the buildings too and are frequent enough that you can really just go building by building to get where you need to go. So whether you want to avoid the elements or bask in them this campus offers a great balance of Natural and Engineered surroundings. Also The Caf is one of the best dining experiences I have ever seen (outside of Disney World and Byward Market). It's all you can eat and there are several stations where you can get freshly prepared food (menus change daily) or just get something simple like a bowl of cereal or ice cream. A couple complaints I do have about Carleton though is that there always seems to be construction so even if you get your routes down pat one day they could completely change the next. That and for whatever reason when it rains water pools quickly so you will constantly be avoiding puddles while also trying not to bump into people. read more

The price was affordable, and the living quarters security was good -- every building needed card key access. There was some sort of turn down service as we found fresh soap and a cup on our pillow after the second day. The staff seemed very inexperienced, and inconsiderate. Our room was not accessible due to a broken door, so after a few attempts at reprogramming our card key then a staff member came to see that we weren't kidding about no entry. Check in took almost two hours till we managed to get into another room. The shared bathroom isn't properly described, it entails a bathroom shared between you and your neighbour next door. With two doors, where one person enters the room they lock both doors and when they leave they unlock "your" door and then lock their side. Very often the cleaning staff will lock you out, or if you have an inconsiderate neighbour who forgets to unlock your side. Your sh!t out of luck literally if you want to use the bathroom. We had to call security numerous times to unlock the door, so we could wash up, shower, or use the toilet. I'd strongly suggest to avoid spicy foods if you are staying here, as it's a gamble if you'll get access to the bathroom or not. I woke up during the night to pee, only to find the door inaccessible. There is a sink in each room but the water pressure is non-existent so if you wash your hands you'll be rinsing the soap off for a good couple mins. And forget having a nice hot shower, "hot" water -- was luke warm at most. If you want quiet time in your room, there is very little of that. You'll constantly hear the slamming of doors, and voices in the hallway echoing through. Some students still stay in residence during the summer, and are still in "party-mode". The free breakfast is a joke, they only serve between 6:30-8:30. So if you wanted to sleep in a bit that morning then no breakfast for you. We were only a few mins late and staff basically said we were screwed. We had come up to Ottawa for a wedding and we needed to iron our clothes. Luckily the staff said they had one for us to borrow which was fantastic. Only to find out the one they gave us was completely broken and unusable. Finally the parking is horrendous and out of the way. They had us pay for passes, $10 for a weekday, $3 for weekend. Despite how very far our parking was -- which made it very inconvenient lugging our bags back and forth. I still ended up with a parking ticket "warning", when confronting a security guard about the ticket. He explained that it was the front's desks responsibility to fill out the information for the passes. Which they did not. When we checked out and showed them the ticket, they were unapologetic saying it was our responsibility -- and were quite rude about it. Making us very happy to leave, and never come back. In the end, you get what you pay for -- I'd sooner pay for a cheap motel in order to have my own bathroom, hot water, close free parking, and maybe a warmer personal experience. read more

Fantastic school. Situated beside two beautiful rivers, park and bike trail. Equipped with the otrain for a peaceful ride and underground tunnels for staying warm in the winter or dodging the rain. This university is a little bit more expensive than some but the new buildings and layout justifies the cost in itself. Carleton also has a fantastic business, engineering, humanities and journalism program. Small classes, down to earth students and professors and a relaxed, comfortable environment.. makes this university one of the best in Canada. Yes a long time ago Carleton was notorious for giving people a chance to go to university even if they had low grades. Nowadays.. that is not the case. However this school does not pride itself on being ranked high in Maclean's.. and it doesn't want to. The whole scenario in Carleton is come relax and enjoy your education. There is very little snobbiness at Carleton and I think that is one of the greatest attributes of the university. read more

It's a great school for many disciplines, though it seems lacking in the medical field, and is only now beginning to host a Health Sciences program. I find the campus itself much more welcoming than that of the University of Ottawa (which is located downtown). You have the Rideau river, which is beautiful yea-round (and which is great for fishing in between classes or on weekends, as its full of bass and musky and many other species). You can also sit and watch the swans that frequent the stretch of river between campus and Brewer park. The Rideau canal also runs nearby, and during winter that gives you access to one of the best public skating areas in the world. There is an underground tunnel system as well, allowing you to access your classrooms without venturing outside if the weather is foul. There is plenty of parking, the O-Train runs through campus, as well as many bus routes, which makes transportation quite simple. Some of the buildings (like Loeb and MacKenzie) are a bit older, and not the prettiest to study in. There are however many newer buildings, like the River and Canal buildings, that more than make up for it. There are many clubs, sports teams and other extra-curricular activities to participate in, and there is a school gym closer to Bronson that students can access (though few of them realize that they have already paid fees for these facilities in their tuition, so you may as well use them). The bookstores that stock all essential texts are within walking distance from the school, and there are also plenty of food options nearby and on campus. There is a great ethnic and cultural diversity at Carleton, which it takes great pride in. The provided academic supports, such as the Paul Menton centre for students with disabilities, and the Student Academic Success Centre are quite helpful and easy to navigate. Nearby, at Brewer Park, a wall that serves as a support for a bridge has been designated as a graffiti wall, and is quite interesting to check out from time to time. The dorm experience (I have been told) is quite enjoyable, and there are very affordable apartments across Bronson and in the Prince of Wales towers across the Canal (where I lived and which I would highly recommend). read more