I started my PhD in the middle of the first semester this year, which meant I was late to apply for any scholarships.
My university reopened one of the main scholarships, and applications are accepted until the end of June.
I have the required grades for this scholarship, but I also need two recommendation letters. My current SV agreed to write my first recommendation letter, but the problem is that I am new to this university. I asked my supervisor if the head of the department would be a good candidate for writing my second letter, and he said that I should ask my master’s SV for the second letter because the current head of the department is writing a recommendation for another student, which could make my application weaker.
This situation made me think: did my SV mean to warn me about the scholarship? Maybe it is not worth trying to apply this time because of the department’s support for another student? It is very unlikely that both of us will receive the scholarship, as it is very competitive.
Any advice?