ANU master's degree enrolments up 900% but is the qualification worth it?

There were 5272 students enrolled in a master's program at the Australian National University last year, 10 times (or nearly 900 per cent higher than) the figure in 1995.

But with so many people now holding the qualification and fees often topping the price of a new family car, are all those extra hours in the books worth it?

The experts say the answer is yes, but with conditions.

Graduate Careers Australia policy adviser for 26 years, Bruce Guthrie, publishes an annual report of national graduate outcomes and salaries which found master's degree holders were more likely to have full-time employment than those with only a bachelor's degree.

Of those with a new course work master's, and who were available for full-time work, 18.3 per cent had no full-time job four months after graduating. For a research master's graduate the figure was 24.1 per cent. Both figures were superior to the 31.9 per cent of bachelor's degree holders looking for full-time work (the majority without a full-time job across all categories had part-time or casual work).

But Mr Guthrie said the figures were impacted by the many people completing a master's who already had a career, and without experience the master's gave no clear benefit.

"It wouldn't be accurate to say a master's degree helps people get a job quicker than would a bachelor degree, and some data suggests those people who go direct to postgraduate study after a bachelor degree don't have superior employment figures to [those with] a bachelor degree only."

On salary, Mr Guthrie said his survey showed the fairest value to attribute to a master's degree by course work was an extra $7000 per year compared to the median bachelor's degree-only graduate.

A candidate for a masters then had to consider the cost of study, in terms of fees, any foregone salary and time sacrifice.

"There are some professions for which you need to get directly onto a master's degree – a psychologist for example – but for most other graduates with a bachelor degree I'd hesitate to go directly into a master's degree, I'd keep that up your sleeve for a few years down the track," Mr Guthrie said.

While some employers could be worried about hiring someone who was overqualified, the extra degree could also make the difference in a competitive field for many occupations, he said.

The University of Canberra's Professor Anne Daly completed a study on the value of a business master's degree last year and found the wider circumstances were important.

"The summary answer is that it's not a good investment for a full-time student, but if the student studies part-time and continues to work its worthwhile," she said.

Recruitment specialist Hays ACT regional director Jim Roy said a master's could narrow career directions, but over the entire work force they were more valuable than not.

"We see it in Canberra with people who study a master's in public policy, that can lead to a trade-off in the ability to take your career in a different direction [but] If you are looking to advance to a senior executive it's a benefit," he said.

ANU's Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), Professor Marnie Hughes-Warrington said the vast majority of students who choose to do a master's degree said they wanted to add to their qualifications for personal self-development reasons, and to improve their job security, career advancement and employment prospects.

For Australian students, supported by Commonwealth funding, the indicative cost of a master's is about $8500 per year, Professor Hughes-Warrington said. At the University of Canberra, the most expensive per annum postgraduate course is the Master of Business Administration (Innovation and Leadership), which costs $45,000 for 18 months.

Master's degree students

ANU: 5,227 in 2015, up from 526 in 1995 (+893 per cent)

UC: 2,375 in 2015, up from 797 in 1995 (+198 per cent)