COVID-19 Vaccines

Students who coming to campus or living in residence after completing their travel quarantine and prior to being fully vaccinated should receive their vaccination as soon as possible after the end of the quarantine period.

Please review the definition of being fully vaccinated in Ontario.

Once you have received your first vaccination, even if it is after the September 8 deadline, you will be allowed to attend campus for in-person activities. If applicable, this includes living in residence if you have a confirmed room assignment. Please note that until you are fully vaccinated (14 days after your second dose) you will be required to do twice-weekly rapid testing at Carleton. Rapid testing on campus is free of charge and more information on this process will be provided shortly.

Effective October 15, 2021, all individuals who are coming on to campus and/or participating in an in-person Carleton activity, must be fully vaccinated and provide proof of vaccination to the University.

Yes, attestation of vaccination status and providing documentary proof is a mandatory legal requirement.

Any individual who cannot be vaccinated on medical grounds or other protected grounds recognized by the Ontario Human Rights Code can request an exemption. All individuals who are unvaccinated due to permitted exemptions or who are awaiting their second dose are required to adhere to additional health and safety measures, including frequent rapid testing.

Unvaccinated individuals without an approved permitted exemption will not be able to attend campus or any University activity in person. Carleton community members with approved permitted exemptions will be able to book a mandatory rapid testing appointment through cuScreen.

A negative rapid test will be required within 72 hours before participating in an in-person activity at Carleton.

To assist with planning purposes, we encourage all members of the Carleton University community to complete the vaccination attestation form and submit their documents as soon as possible even if you are not planning to participate in in-person activities at this time.

In addition, individuals who cannot be vaccinated on medical grounds or other protected grounds should file an exemption form and submit them well in advance of any planned in-person activities to allow time for review.

Unvaccinated individuals without an approved permitted exemption will not be able to attend campus or any University activity in person.

To attest to being vaccinated:

• Log into cuScreen
• Click on “Report your latest vaccination status”
• Carefully read each question and answer appropriately
• Upload proof of vaccination (vaccine dose administration receipts or equivalent documents), preferably in PDF format

To assist with planning purposes, we encourage all members of the Carleton University community to complete the vaccination attestation form and submit their documents as soon as possible even if you are not planning to participate in in-person activities at this time.

Individuals who are coming on to campus must attest to receiving their first dose vaccine by September 8, 2021, and their second dose no later than October 15, 2021.

To attest to being vaccinated:

• Log into cuScreen
• Click on “Complete your mandatory vaccination attestation form”
• Carefully read each question and answer appropriately
• Upload proof of vaccination (vaccine dose administration receipts or equivalent documents), preferably in PDF format

Effective October 15, 2021, all individuals who are coming on to campus and/or participating in an in-person Carleton activity, must be fully vaccinated and provide proof of vaccination to the University.

Individuals who cannot be vaccinated due to an approved permitted exemption will be subject to additional public health measures, including mandatory rapid testing and disclosure of test results pursuant to the University’s testing procedures and policies.

Any individual who cannot be vaccinated on medical grounds or other protected grounds recognized by the Ontario Human Rights Code can request an exemption. Unvaccinated individuals without an approved permitted exemption will not be able to attend campus or any University activity in-person.

All individuals who are unvaccinated due to permitted exemptions or who are awaiting their second dose are required to adhere to additional health and safety measures, including frequent rapid testing. Carleton community members with approved permitted exemptions will be able to book a mandatory rapid testing appointment through cuScreen. A negative rapid test will be required within 72 hours before participating in an in-person activity at Carleton.

There is no exemption from rapid testing.

Yes, before attending campus each day, all individuals including students, faculty, staff, contractors and visitors must complete a screening self-assessment through cuScreen. This is based on the provincial COVID-19 screening standards.

cuScreen Ambassadors and university staff may ask (and are permitted to ask) to see your self-assessment status through cuScreen. Individuals on campus are required to show this status upon request.

Yes. The vaccination requirements complement the extensive health and safety measures already in place and our existing return to campus plans.  Existing health and safety protocols will remain in place including mask requirements, physical distancing, mandatory screening and enhanced cleaning protocols. Courses that are scheduled to be delivered in person and/or online will continue as planned, with all in-person courses proceeding with physical distancing, masks, and a maximum capacity of 60 students.

As a result of the recent strong recommendation of the Council of Ontario Medical Officers of Health (COMOH), which represents all 34 public health units across the Province, Carleton University along with all post-secondary institutions in Ontario, will be requiring mandatory vaccination against COVID-19 for all individuals (students, staff, faculty, contractors, and visitors) involved in any in-person activities both on- and off-campus. COMOH has issued a strong recommendation requiring individuals to provide proof of vaccination.

In addition, the University has received instructions from the Office of the Chief Medical Officer of Ontario requiring the University to implement a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy with proof of full vaccination to attend campus.

Carleton is legally required to follow the recommendations of public health officials

Carleton’s vaccination requirements comply with public health recommendations and are consistent with policies being implemented by other Ontario universities.

Carleton University has partnered with Thrive Health Inc. to provide the cuScreen web portal. As a health care technology company, Thrive Health Inc. has expertise in protecting individual private health information. All data provided or received through the platform is encrypted and your personal information is stored within Canada. Thrive Health Inc. follows data security and privacy standards that align with federal and provincial laws and guidelines such as PHIPA, FIPPA, HIPPA, PIPEDA, PCI, and NIST. Thrive Health Inc. removes all health screening responses from the application after 30 days and does not use this data for commercial purposes or marketing to our community.

cuScreen has also been assessed by Carleton University’s Privacy Office and Information Security team which confirmed its compliance with applicable privacy standards. For more information, please visit our privacy webpage.

For the purposes of meeting the university’s vaccination requirements, please review the definition of being fully vaccinated.

Health Canada has approved four vaccines for use in Canada:

• Pfizer-BioNTech – approved on December 9, 2020
• Moderna – approved on December 23, 2020
• AstraZeneca – approved on February 26, 2021
• Janssen (Johnson & Johnson) – approved on March 5, 2021

You can book a vaccine appointment through the Government of Ontario’s vaccine booking system, by calling the provincial hotline at 1-833-943-3900 or by calling Ottawa Public Health at 613-580-6744.

Drop-in vaccinations are also available at any community clinic, pop-up clinic, or neighbourhood vaccination hub in Ottawa.

Health and Counselling Services offered vaccination clinics on campus until October 14, 2021.

Drop-in vaccinations are available at any community clinic, pop-up clinic, or neighbourhood vaccination hub in Ottawa.

Two doses deliver stronger protection against COVID-19. It is important to receive both doses of the vaccine to complete the vaccine series. The protection offered by the first dose helps your body build immunity and the second dose boosts your immunity.

Getting both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine and completing the full course of vaccination further reduces your risk of being hospitalized as a result of COVID-19.

In order to be considered fully vaccinated, you must have received the full series of a vaccine or a combination of vaccines approved by Health Canada and received the last dose at least 14 days before the date of their attestation.

COVID-19 vaccines are a safe and effective way to help us safely return to regular life – including in-person classes, indoor sports, and visits with friends and family.

For more information on COVID-19 vaccines, please visit our COVID-19 Vaccination Information website.

Yes. As a result of the recent strong recommendation of the Council of Ontario Medical Officers of Health (COMOH), all students living in residence must be fully vaccinated.

Any individual who cannot be vaccinated on medical grounds or other protected grounds recognized by the Ontario Human Rights Code can request an exemption.

Drop-in vaccinations are available at any community clinic, pop-up clinic, or neighbourhood vaccination hub in Ottawa.

Yes, you will be able to receive your second vaccine dose in Ottawa.

You can call the provincial hotline at 1-833-943-3900 or Ottawa Public Health at 613-580-6744.

International students currently in Ottawa should contact Ottawa Public Health by calling 613-580-6744 to book an appointment. Once booked, you will be instructed on what pieces of identification (IDs) you will need to bring to the appointment. For students with the University Health Insurance Plan (UHIP), Sunlife is advising that you bring your UHIP card, 3 pieces of ID and proof of your address in Canada).

You will still be able to get a vaccine. Call the provincial hotline 1-833-943-3900 to book an appointment.

For more information and specific FAQs on COVID-19 vaccines for international students please visit International Student Services Office (ISSO) website.