Would external funding help PhD admissions for 2021?

[freakoutphd]

Hello. I am an international student applying for PhD in public policy/social sciences in the States. I have a relevant master's degree, a published paper, 1+ years of professional experience in research, and solid scores (CGPA of 3.9+/4.0, GRE of 330+ and 5.0).

I currently have a fellowship that fully supports tuition and stipends until I finish my program. I can only provide my financial statement to a select few programs, so I have to be careful with my choices. This is where I am struggling.

I've heard that fellowships can be helpful but they are not critical in PhD admissions, especially for top schools. This year, however, many schools are not accepting students and cutting down the number of cohorts. So here is my question: Would external funding significantly help my admissions this year, and even for top schools like MIT and Harvard? Or should I use my financial statement for schools that are more "safe"?

I hope everyone is safe during this unprecedented crisis, and wish the best for the admissions cycle this year!

[drunkenduck]

If I were you, I would talk to POIs, program coordinators, and/or department heads and see what the funding situation actually is at those schools and for the professors you want to work with.

The reason I say this is because I have spoken to multiple schools who say that their funding is not being affected by Covid at all, and I have also spoken to a couple of professors who say that they would take me on if they had more funding, but they don't. So I think those conversations will be the best indicator of whether you should use your financial statement for that program or not.

Also, I'm not sure what the rules are for sharing your fellowship information with programs, but perhaps you could give the remaining programs unofficial paperwork demonstrating your financial aid?

[freakoutphd]

Just now, drunkenduck said:

If I were you, I would talk to POIs, program coordinators, and/or department heads and see what the funding situation actually is at those schools and for the professors you want to work with.

The reason I say this is because I have spoken to multiple schools who say that their funding is not being affected by Covid at all, and I have also spoken to a couple of professors who say that they would take me on if they had more funding, but they don't. So I think those conversations will be the best indicator of whether you should use your financial statement for that program or not.

Also, I'm not sure what the rules are for sharing your fellowship information with programs, but perhaps you could give the remaining programs unofficial paperwork demonstrating your financial aid?

Thank you for your advice! I should definitely try to communicate with each program.

I am not allowed to share any information regarding my fellowship other than the schools I decided to send the statements.