I'm a woodentop (non graduate) through and through, even to the point of admitting to attending 'that place in Bedfordshire', so please feel free to take my opinion on graduates with a pinch of salt.
As far as I am concerned though neither military or civil aviation requires a degree (I've done 11 years plus in each). The best pilots will achieve degree level knowledge, but as has already been said, this can be achieved on the job, whether formally or not. Aviation is like many other careers, where people are being pushed into doing degrees for no particular reason. In many, like nursing, it actually damages the capacity to do the basic job in hand (in the case of nurses, the job in hand is often attached to a pilot!)
The Merchant Navy had it right (when we had one), what they wanted was 5 O'levels and keen to go to sea; they provided the rest. In my own case (9 O'levels, 2.5 A'levels) I have progressed quite happily to fast jet pilot, Senior Airline Training Captain, FRAeS, and freelance Human Factors Consultant without a degree.
I'm not knocking graduates, or 3 years of deabauchary, just suggesting that the recruitment system has no need to seek a degree as a pre entry requirement.