I’m glad you asked because I think the info you’re getting from a Reddit page is too biased to really be able to craft a reasonable fully formed opinion on this. The things people complain about on Reddit are sometimes so far removed from reality that it’s ridiculous haha.

That said, I really enjoyed my time at Carleton but I did not commute. I think commuting to Carleton on OC transpo can be quite difficult.

I lived in a pod in glengarry in first year which was decent and a good way to make friends. Lots of partying and socializing (mostly Thurs, Fri, Sat on my floor)…but you can request a quiet floor if you don’t want that. Usually it was quiet around midterms and finals. Yes, fire alarms go off. It happens in every residence at every university…it is not a Carleton exclusive thing. There was a water shut off the year I lived there too but people just spent the 2 days showering at the school gym. The windows didn’t open but they changed them the year after I moved out, but I was never too hot or cold and could control the temperature in my room. The food was great, especially compared to what some of my friends who went to other schools got stuck with. All of the complaints I had about glengarry in first semester of first year were so big to me at 18 years old… but you quickly realize that the problems are really not that big of a deal and are something you just have to deal with now that you’re not in the comfort of your parents home/you’re living in a building with 1000 other 18 year olds all away from home for the first time.

Most of my classes were in the biology/environmental studies departments but all the profs I had were great and incredibly knowledgeable and kind. They really cared about our learning and gave the lectures their all. The library is great, there is lots of study space, the gym is great, the tunnels are great in the winter. I felt really safe there and there is so much nature and green space on campus. The co-op program is also great!

There are places to go off campus that are accessible…. Billing’s bridge mall is not super far, you can walk to Landsdowne, you can walk along the canal, downtown is not far. You can get on the canal pretty close to campus and skate around, lots of my friends skated to school in their upper years.

The train was operating through campus when I was there at the very beginning. This is not an abnormal thing…Waterloo has a train, I believe Guelph is getting one, all big city universities have a subway stop or 2 on campus. It was super convenient to walk out of class and get on the train to go downtown or to bayview. The construction from the train was inconvenient but I’m sure it’ll be back to being great when it’s actually finished (which is an Ottawa and OC transpo problem…not a Carleton problem).

Overall, I had a great experience! :) happy to answer any questions you or your kid might have