How much does grad school experience matter for Ph.D applications?

[mogadishu]

Greetings,

I'm currently a grad student studying International Affairs at Penn State. I'm scheduled to receive my MIA degree after this semester, and planning to apply to PhD programs in political science this fall. Just recently took the new GRE today, 160V 159Q don't know the AW score yet. Undergrad GPA 3.2, Grad GPA 3.89. So far I'm not quite content with my statistical credentials, but as I noticed most people are applying the Pol.Sci PhD programs straight from undergrad, I'm wondering if my grad school experience and my expected MIA degree will give me any boost for my applications?

Also do I definitely need to take the GRE again in order to have a decent chance of getting accepted somewhere? I'm not very happy with my new score, but I'm not exactly expecting to get into top 10 Psci programs. Personal interests matter more than ranking for me. For example I would be very happy to join PS programs in schools like Johns Hopkins, Brown, and Northwestern, as they have faculties within my area of interest, eventhough their PS programs are typically considered outside of top 20.

Any input is appreciated, thanks!