ERASMUS REPORT
Student’s name: Rebecca Stiffe
Student ID: 13134957
UL Course: Journalism and New Media
Academic Year: 2015/2016
Semester: Spring/ Winter 2016
Host University: Carleton University
Student Experience
My experience at Carleton University was incredible and everything I could have wished for,
I just wished I could have stayed there longer. The students were driven and inspiring and
friendly, like all Canadians. Once you make one friend, you’re introduced to five more, so
my only advice would be to be brave on your first day and be the first one to say hi. The
people are so friendly, much like the Irish. My first flight was from Dublin to Boston and
then from Boston to Ottawa. The airline was Air Canada and I would highly recommend this
airline for internal flights or in general if you can when flying to Canada. The air hostess was
so nice- it was a small, little tiny charter plane that flies really close to the land so you can see
everything. The aircraft is more like a bus, with only about twenty seats or so, and the
luggage is stored under the wing. Even though it was only a short flight, I was offered
biscuits and tea and puzzles and the single flight attendant was so kind, making my
experience off to a great start.
You can get a free shuttle from the airport to the city, and then a bus from the city to the
university, however I would recommend downloading Uber on your phone and getting an
Uber to your address, as it is so much easier and it’s really cheap. It’s especially a good idea
if you don’t have cash on you when you just land, and it’s safe because you know what car
and model and driver is coming to pick you up.
If you’re only going for a semester, I would recommend that you don’t bother opening a bank
account. I had money saved and transferred to my account, and took cash out in bulk so that
the charge on my Debit card was only a couple of dollars each time.
The Carleton University campus is immense and beautiful, like the city itself, and full of
students and beautiful scenery, much like UL. The North American university atmosphere is
something I had always wanted to experience and Carleton really brought that to life for me.
There are students recruiting for all kinds of societies, and this is a great way to make friends.
I didn’t join any, as I spent most of my free time in the city and the sports teams are really
competitive- most are on a scholarship there because of it- but one that was helpful was the
International Society. It’s essentially a group for international students to meet and go on
trips and adventures, and one I definitely recommend you join. You’ll be told about it at
orientation and they’ll have speakers there to talk about it and the events they have lined up,
and they’ll tell you to join the group on Facebook.
Institutional Practises
My first day at Carleton University I found myself trekking through a snow covered campus
trying to find a building where my orientation would take place. The bus dropped me off
right in front of the student’s union which was right by the O-train, too. There were plenty of
helpful maps dotted all around the university, which told you where exactly you were with an
arrow. I had downloaded the map on my phone so I found the building I was looking for
pretty quickly. Coming out of the building though, I was disorientated and lost, as I came out
of a completely different exit as to how I had entered.
A nice international student walked me to where the bus stop was, and I ended up making a
friend. The orientation was in a large lecture hall and about two hours long. It was extremely
detailed and helpful, we were each given pamphlets with really useful information about
clubs and societies, who to go to if we were having trouble with classes or general
homesickness, and plenty of insight on where to go, while the orientation itself made me feel
at ease, with lecture slides on settling in etc.
We had a short break where they gave us free starbucks coffee and Timbits (a Canadian
speciality you must try from Tim Hortons, which was a really touch!) Afterwards, they gave
us a tour of the campus which was really helpful. The campus is quite large, and even though
I was there for five months, I still had trouble not getting lost, particularly with the
underground tunnels. Because it’s quite cold (temperatures drop to minus forty with
windchill), the campus have underground heated tunnels so students don’t have to venture out
and face the elements, but instead can travel beneath the campus to where they need to go. I
tried using these passages but I could never get to where I wanted to, and the maps on the
walls weren’t helpful. I ended up travelling to the complete opposite side of campus to where
I was initially heading, and walked the entire way around in the freezing snow.
I decided to stay in the city as opposed to near the University. I had friends there and at
Carleton, you have to purchase a mandatory U-Pass, so I had free travel. This U-Pass is like
an ID card and you can travel pretty much anywhere in the city with it via bus or the O-Train.
The college is quite a bit away from the city, about 40 minutes during snow. I stayed right on
Rideau Street (the main street) and I’m glad I did. Most of my friends I made lived there and
if I would have had to commute in and out from living near the university, I’m not sure I
would have seen as much of Ottawa as I did. I booked on Airbnb, so the apartment was
furnished and heating and bills were all included in the price. But if you look on other sites
off campus, be aware that most of the places come completely unfurnished.
The city is extremely safe. I don’t think I’ve ever felt as safe in Ireland as I did in Ottawa, and
I frequently walked home from the city at night. The nightclubs are located in Byward market
which is definitely somewhere everyone should see when they arrive. The Ottawa skyline is
something else, but you would need to walk to the other side of the Canal to really appreciate
it.
When I was originally looking up courses, I was on the Carleton module class list. It’s a
pretty difficult site to manage, as it’s arranged in a tiered selection system, so if you type in
English, you’ll not only get all of the English classes, but for all years, from first year to
fourth. It was hard to manage, and a lot of the courses have prerequisites so make sure to
email the lecturer beforehand to make sure that you can take the class before you arrive, as a
lot of the classes fill up really fast, too. The main difference I found in terms of classes, was
the dedication of the students. Everyone is eager to learn and is up to date on the coursework,
and I realised it’s largely due to how much money they spend on tuition fees, so any messing
about would be a colossal waste of money. Another difference I noticed is that class
discussion is a regular aspect of the teaching system in Canadian universities. Lecturers strive
to learn their student’s names, even if it may be a class of one hundred, and will call upon
people to give their opinions. This approach made me learn so much more and encouraged
me to work hard so that if I was called upon, I would have something to say, which the
professors expected.
Cultural Differences
Ottawa is the capital city of Canada, on the borderline of the provinces Quebec and Ontario,
and it’s bilingual. All of the signposts are in both English and French, however everyone
speaks English. If you venture to Quebec, however, it’s a different story. Everyone speaks to
each other in French and some will only speak French to you. I got on a bus and the driver
refused to speak English to me, the same with some stores I went to. I had no issues with this
in Ottawa itself, however.
The easiest way to get around is definitely by bus, though sometimes there could be a lot of
traffic, particularly in Spring/ Winter when there’s a heavy snowfall. There is an O-Train as
well, but there aren’t as many stops as the bus. Like I said, at night time in particular I would
recommend getting an Uber as it’s the most convenient way to get around.
The city is stunning and full of life and there are plenty of places to visit, from the History
Museum to Parliament Hill, to a Senators Ice Hockey Game, to ice skating on the Rideau
Canal. Every month or so, at Parliament Hill (which looks like Big Ben), there is a
spectacular light and music show, where a beautiful story is projected on to the administrative
building. Many families go there and bring their little children, and there’s a huge fire that
burns outside of the building in the middle so even in Winter, you can keep warm while
watching. Oh, and it’s completely free.
The cost of buying groceries was through the roof. The price of meat and cheese was so
expensive, which surprised me because Ottawa is a largely agricultural region which relies on
its farming industry. Cheese was over ten dollars for a small block. On Tuesdays and
Thursdays however, Loblaws, which is the main grocery chain like Supervalu or Tesco, offer
a ten percent student discount, which really helped, but just to be sure to bring your card with
you.
On the other hand, eating out was really cheap. There are two restaurants in the city- Laurier
and Warehouse- which are pretty similar, and both offer all courses for just $5. My friends
and I mostly went there for something to eat as it was much cheaper than cooking a meal, and
the portions were delicious and large. You do have to tip in Canada though, even if you’re
paying by card, the option will come up on the reader to tip. The usual is ten percent but I
always left at least a dollar.
The Canadian people are outdoorsy and love nature and being outside and being active, even
in the cold months. There are so much activities that you can get involved in to keep fit or
even if you’re not interested in sports, you’ll find the winter activities so much fun. The
International Society offers great chances to take part in adventures, such as snow shoeing in
Gatineau Park and other adventures. I went snow sledding with some friends in a nearby park
with nothing but an old piece of cardboard and it was great! There are ski and snowboarding
resorts a little bit out from the city if you just type it in to google, but lots of people
snowboard down the hills in the park.
Ice skating and ice hockey are a great way to try something new. I picked up some old figure
skates and an ice hockey stick for great value at a Charity Shop and would often meet up with
friends to go down to an outdoor rink in the park to play. It was a great way to learn
something new, keep fit during winter and take have a taste of Canadian culture.
Hints and Tips
Be friendly and make an effort with the people at college. Canadians are extremely helpful
and kind, and I’ve met some of the most amazing people while on exchange. If you can, go to
an ice hockey game. You don’t have to pay for a NHL Senators game, you can go to one of
the Ravens games at the university. The players are practically celebrities on campus, and the
college store sells gear so you can fit right in. The tickets are cheap, too. Macs is a little
grocery store that gives you a litre of pop (they have endless brands) for just 79c, and extra
large hot drinks (from cookie flavoured drinks to coffees) for $1.30, which saved my life
while I was there.
Poutine is Canada’s version of Supermac’s garlic cheese chip- you can’t leave the country
without trying one. It’s basically chips topped with gravy and cheese curds, but most places
have different toppings you can add on to it. My personal favourite place was the Byward
market, just off of Rideau Street. It has a range of stores and stalls on the weekends with
trinkets and various items and all of the nightclubs are situated around there. The main
landmarks are all walking distance from there too, but best of all they sell Beavertails every
day. Beavertails are a deep fried pastry topped with anything from Smores, to Oreo, Nutella
and M&Ms and are a MUST try, they’re sold in a stall right in front of Byward.
Be sure to bring a warm jacket, gloves, woolly socks and boots or Uggs, and watch out for
snow slush puddles that look like ice, because you might find yourself knee deep in icy water.
The cold is different in Canada than Ireland. On days where there was no wind, I loved being
outside and going to the Nordstrom Mall, but on days where there was wind I could barely be
outside for five minutes without having to run into a shop front to warm up again. The wind
chill brings the temperatures down considerably, so be sure to bring a scarf to protect against
it.
If you’re planning on travelling in Canada, keep in mind that it’s really expensive to fly from
one to coast to the other. I really wanted to see Vancouver while I was on my exchange, but
the tickets were $800 return, where as to fly to Los Angeles it was half that price. Buses from
Ottawa to Vancouver are available, but they’re still a solid $300 dollars and above, with 130
stops and non-stop travelling for three days straight. Toronto and Montreal are easily
accessible, though, so if you have a few days free over Mid Term break be sure to get to one
of them.
But most of all, my only advice would be to remember this: your experience at Carleton will
be made by the people you meet and the friendships you form, so make the most of it and
don’t be afraid to approach people. The early you do, the better and the more fun you will
have!