No right answer but of the MSc gives you full membership and you can work in HR while doing it I would do that. If its a full time course then the risk is you come out qualified but with no experience.

If you do the MSc ensure it is accredited by CIPD, that way when you graduate you will get an MSc and will become a L7 CIPD equivalent which will help you later when going for Chartered Member etc.

Lv7 will still have you graded as associate cipd and then you go through assessment free within the first year if your operating at a strategic level and can demonstrate such and then pass to MCIPD- check out the cipd website for more upgrading info. Good luck. Experience and qualifications together will ALWAYS add value

As Keith says - no right answer

for me, an MSc providing it is recognised for CIPD membership. L 7 is great BUT it is not as well recognised in the international scene as a masters degree. Having said that, there are a lot of non-uk people recruiting in the UK and given 2 candidates, one with a level 7 and one with a masters, there may be bias towards the masters.

In reply to Mike Morrison:

This was exactly my thinking too. I did my Masters accredited as Level 7 because it gave me the best of both worlds. Access to CIPD membership, but also an internationally recognised post-graduate qualification that would be useful outside of the UK where CIPD is not so widely understood.

It is hard to say, each employer is different. As others have mentioned, Masters is better known internationally but any UK based practicioner would know what L7 CIPD is. Look at what is suited for you and if it is in line with your time, money and personal commitments. Few things to consider:
1. L7 is shorter and there are more options to study it, e.g. distance, blended learning, part-time... Also, since it is shorter, it is slighly cheaper.
2. How inclined are you to research? Final year in uni is dissertation, which is not required at L7. Masters may be generally less practice-focused, especially if it is MSc.
3. Don't be fooled by chartered promise - just because you get free upgrade, it is not automatic. If you do not have enough strategic experience, going for it and failing may be disapointing.

If you do Masters, definitely look for CIPD accredited course but, at the same time, don't forget that you can always do a top-up separately, even though that may limit the number of universities you apply.