According to new research conducted by Graduate Careers Australia (GCA), postgraduate degrees pay dividends in an uncertain market.

The research revealed that about 86 per cent of postgraduates who were available for full-time employment were in full-time employment four months after the completion of their studies - marginally down from around 87 per cent in 2009 and 90 per cent in 2008.

While the figures were slightly lower in 2010, GCA senior research associate Graeme Bryant noted that when taken in context, they are still a positive reflection of the added value of postgraduate study.

"Employment figures of 86 per cent for postgraduates in 2010 are around 10 percentage points higher than the equivalent figure of 76 per cent for bachelor degree graduates," explained Bryant. "While bachelor degree employment figures have fallen by around nine percentage points over the past two years, employment figures for postgraduates have only fallen by four percentage points over the same period."

• Postgraduates who studied part-time were more likely to be in full-time employment four months after graduation than those who studied full-time
• Postgraduates in their first full-time jobs earned less, on average, than those postgraduates who had previous full-time employment experience
• Male postgraduates earned more, on average, than their female counterparts ($80,000 compared to $65,000)
• The median age of a new postgraduate was 34 compared with a median age of 23 for bachelor degree graduates

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