Research light application - go the MS or PhD route?

[Hula-hoop]

I'm two years out of undergrad and am in the process of applying for fall 2017.

My undergrad's in physical anthropology, and I'm interested in going back to school for anatomy based programs. It's not a completely topic change as a lot of my courses in undergrad were anatomy and physiology based. I'm also taking the Bio GRE at the end of this month as I have less Bio coursework than a typical STEM major.

In the past two years, I've been working in a science museum as a teacher, so I have a lot of experience talking about science and speaking in front of groups. BUT this means that I haven't been in a lab for two years, and I haven't been doing research. I'm hoping that I can play up all my teaching experience in my SOP, but I am very weak on the research portion which is so crucial.

I have three professors from undergrad who are on board to write recommendations for me. They all know me pretty well and have actually written recommendations for me before for scholarships and research grants in undergrad. GPA 3.81, GRE V165 Q160 W5.5.

I'm planning on applying to a variety of MS/PhD programs, probably 5-6. Should I maybe just apply only for MS programs to help my research resume before trying for PhD programs? I'd like to start contacting a few professors to see if they're taking grad students, but I want to be sure which step is best for me.

Feel free to ask for any additional details.

[rising_star]

Two key questions: Can you contact some of your undergrad professors to get their opinion about whether you should be applying to MS or PhD programs? Do you have a clear idea of what you want to do research on that you could articulate in a PhD application?

[Hula-hoop]

Thanks for replying! I've talked to my undergrad professors, and they're pretty much saying "go for the PhD but apply for Masters programs just in case". They're pretty focused on funding and having better research opportunities. But they are all quite a few years older and have always been in academia. Any more recent grads/grad students are suggesting a Masters.  

I have a research area that I want to focus on, but I think I really have a lot more to learn. I've been really leaning towards going for a Masters first.