Be very careful who's advice you decide to take here. Some people offering advice aren't much further along the line than you are, others (GtE) really know what they're talking about.
FWIW, I did degree to open up other career routes if needed and for the personal development, and to allow myself the experience of university.
I graduated (after years of hard work and hard playing, lots of new experiences to talk about and memories to enjoy) during a substantial recession, and took a job advertised for school leavers at a salary less than half what I could have expected any other time.
A couple of years later I was sat at a salary far above what I could have expected had I entered a graduate scheme, having been promoted very quickly within the same company, with an offer of employment as an FO from an airline.
Make your own decisions, and then make the best of them. There isn't a right or wrong answer here, anyone who says their way was the best (it may have been for them, not necessarily for you) really isn't seeing the world right.