There has been a mixed response to the announcement universities will have to publish information related to students' job prospects.

LISTEN: Business NZ's Phil O'Reilly speaks to KPMG Early Edition on Universities releasing employment data

In 2017 tertiary education providers will be required to publish data on how many students from what areas are hired - and how much they're earning.

MORE: Universities to publish stats on job expectations

The national students union is questioning the quality of employment data set to be released.

Union of Students Association President Rory McCourt says the figures would be more accurate if they came from university surveys of graduates rather than companies.

He adds there's more to take into account when choosing a university than industry requirements and pay grades.

"Future earnings in job places don't actually tell you whether a degree's any good so it's important that students find out actually what's the quality of the academic program and make a decision on that as well."

McCourt said there's a lot of advice out there already and more information might get lost in the heap.

"There's a lot of data out there about what they put in and what their job prospects might be. What we don't have is good, consistent career guidance for students to interpret all this data."

Meanwhile the Secondary Principals Association is concerned new regulations could scare off talented individuals from their dream careers.

Secondary Principals Association President Sandy Pasley says its becoming more common for employers to hire students from outside of their industry.

Sandy Pasley says companies are looking for more than just the primary job skills:

"People who have got perhaps an arts degree have actually studied Classics and other subjects like Philosophy. They're really good thinkers," she said.

"I think that's really important to be motivated to do what you love doing and if you're motivated and you're doing something you really enjoy you are usually very good at it."