Academic Record vs. Education Interruption question on PTCAS

[kinesrocks]

Hi everyone,

I'm wondering what the difference between Academic Record and Education Interruption on PTCAS?

Academic record question: Does your academic record accurately reflect your capabilities? If no, describe why it does not. Present any information that may assist the admissions committee in interpreting and evaluating your academic history or credentials.

Education Interruption question: Has your education ever been interrupted or affected adversely for reasons other than deficiencies in conduct or academic performance? If yes, please provide an explanation below.

In my experience, I had 2 semesters where I did poorly due to life events in the background and would like to explain this. One of those semesters, I was forced to withdraw from most of my courses and the other one was while I studied abroad I received poor grades due a close person in my life back home receiving a cancer diagnoses and not having my support system with me abroad.
I'm just confused about the difference between these questions and under what question I should write this information?

Thank you!

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[dobsonek]

I feel like education interruption is asking if you had to take a year or more off of school (for example, if you left school after your second semester sophomore year and took a year or two off before returning) while academic record is asking if anything happened in your life that caused you to attain lower grades than you would in normal circumstances.

for example, the spring of sophomore year, my grandmother was put on hospice a week before finals and my dog passed in the middle of finals and all of that together made it too difficult for me to focus on studying so I did really poorly on my finals which caused bad grades in the courses. I would mention that in the academic record portion but because I never took time off from school I wouldn’t put anything in education interruption.

 

[kinesrocks]

That makes more sense. I understand now. Thank you!!