The most successful graduates will have planned ahead

Family and friends were particularly important for careers advice, said the government-funded report by the Institute for Employment Studies.

Those who did best in career terms were those who had planned ahead while still in higher education.

Those from poorer families were more likely to work regularly during term time and less likely to get a good degree.

Many graduates were surprised at how difficult it was to find work Institute for Employment Studies

The researchers drew on the experiences of 1,500 people who applied to enter higher education in 1998, the first year of tuition fees, and were surveyed for a third time in 2003, two years after graduating.

Tough out there

"Many graduates were surprised at how difficult it was to find work," said the report, Next Choices: Career Choices Beyond University.

A substantial minority went into temporary or low-quality jobs.

For some this was for a "breathing space", or to start to pay off debt, but for others it was due to "a lack of visible alternatives" - especially for those who had no clear career plans.

Those earning the higher salaries, and in what they regarded as good quality jobs, tended to be male, from higher socio-economic groups and from families with higher incomes - in other words, "traditional" graduates.

Those in poor quality jobs tended to be from "non-traditional" backgrounds - poorer homes or areas - and to have done less well at university.

"Those who moved to study and work were the most likely to find 'good' jobs; those who returned to their home region to look for work had a particularly difficult time," said the report.

Positive

This reinforces the deprivation trap, because increasingly youngsters are tending to study at their "local" university and live at or near the family home to save money.

"Costs were a significant issue for many."

Average graduate debt was almost �10,000, with those on low family incomes and who studied away from home having the highest debt.

Last month, larger employers surveyed by the Association of Graduate Recruiters said there were simply too many people with degrees.

Six out of 10 firms said the government's policy of expanding higher education was having an adverse impact on graduate quality.

But the new Institute for Employment Studies report said that, overall, the graduates "painted a very positive picture" of their experiences.

The benefits they gained outweighed the costs.

But they felt better careers advice and support, and financial advice, would help future students.