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<p>Unfortunately, when the job market is tight, “prefer” often does mean “require.” If a hiring manager gets a number of candidates with masters degrees, he or she may never look at the applicants with “only” a bachelors.</p>
<p>Hmmm…options–apply anyways for those jobs you want with only a bachelors and hope for the best; apply for lesser jobs (or the same kind of job at a lesser company) that would only require a bachelors and get experience (which could balance out the need for a masters); or get a masters (either now or after you have tried options 1 & 2). </p>
<p>Sometimes working in the field for a few years can give you a better idea of what masters degree to obtain to best further your career.</p>