I agree! You're totally right. Some schools have strict requirements and those will automatically eliminate you as a candidate. I might be biased, but I would just say that a Master's program is preferred because it indicates further, more specialized training in any subject. Especially for Biostats, in your Bachelor's you may have had some fundamental training of a stats software and/or coding, but if you're doing an entire Master's degree on this subject, of course you would have further, more in-depth training of some topics/softwares. Doesn't mean that with a Bachelor's it's impossible to get in. I think with even the best stats, it is hard for someone to get into all of the programs they apply to, but given the fairly strong grades in these classes and with a strong SOP and LORs AND research experience, this person is definitely a good candidate for a PhD.