Okay great, so at least my question #1 was answered, I might not have articulated my confusion as well as possible. Let me explain a bit. Now that I know when people refer to applying to IR Phd's they mean the IR subset of a Poli sci phd, great. Now to the second question.
I know that the 2-3 year gap period isn't required, but everyone on the IR forums say thats it's almost necessary for IR people because top PhD programs barely ever admit students straight out of undergrad.
Being a student who hopes to go straight from undergrad to a PhD, you can see why this would be troubling.
So, is it true? Will I need the gap to be a competitive applicant?