INCREASING numbers of new graduates feel they are stuck in dead-end jobs, according to a survey.

More than half consider themselves under employed and one in 10 know they are in jobs which have not previously required a degree.

The findings, by the Institute for Employment Studies, reflect a massive expansion of higher education - which now includes one in three school leavers.

The survey is based on a study of students who graduated from the University of Sussex between 1991 and 1993.

It shows that, in the long term, getting a degree still pays off in employment prospects.

More than half the graduates were in permanent jobs 18 months after leaving university and nearly three quarters after three years.

However, one in three graduates had been through stages of temporary employment and, three years after leaving university, half were earning less than #14,000.

One in 10 were working in clerical and secretarial jobs which would not previously have required a degree.

More than half considered themselves to be under-employed - principally in the lack of ``intellectual challenge'' in their jobs.

Career dissatisfaction was higher with more recent graduates, who were more likely to feel frustrated at the use being made of their skills and the career opportunities available. Researcher Helen Connor said: ``The study confirms that the graduate market is becoming more polarised in terms of career prospects.

``Larger numbers of graduates are having to settle, at least initially, for lower-skilled and often temporary employment.''

``Under-employment is likely to remain in the foreseeable future unless more employers recognise the benefits from increased output from higher education.''