Reality check!
Lets put a bit of bluntness on the subject. The market is at it's worst for newly qualified low hours pilots. Low hours is a relative term and with no turbine or jet time you will still be considered to be 'low hours' even when you have 1000TT. That's the harsh reality. The other problem is that the opportunities for building hours after qualification are few and far between due to the massively increased competition for these jobs. The market has not been this bad for a decade. There are many, many qualified pilots on the market who are currently jobless.
The advice about getting a degree cannot be questioned. think about it logically, it is a qualification which may well put you in a better position when job seeking, whatever field you choose, often it is a pre-requisite. I would however like to ask George Foreman which airlines are giving him his 'feedback' about degrees? From experience I would say it is contacts, followed by number of hours, type(s) flown, type of operation and general experience (commensurate with age, as they say) which gets the interviews. I know many pilots who do not have degrees, or even A levels, but it has not stood in their way. When you call on the telephone I am sure you will be met with the 'we prefer degrees' answer, but reality is certainly somewhat different. This is not to say that having a degree won't make a difference, it may well do when you are in the melting pot with all the other newly qualified pilots with no experience, but even then it mainly comes down to contacts and right place/ right time to take up any opportunity.
The one thing that is certain is that only the most determined and dedicated (spattered with a few very lucky) will be successful, if you have to think long and hard about continuing then perhaps that should in itself be an influence on your decision? This game has never been easy to get into and has always cost a small fortune for non-sponsored (read the majority) pilots, nothing new there. The odds are stacked against anyone gaining employment straight after qualification. Do not think that you will get a recommendation from a big flight school - you might, but the odds are against you there also.
So all in all it does make the rational person wonder why the hell would anybody get into this game in the first place? The fact is it comes down to how much you want to do it. Only you can decide that. If you want it enough you will make it, but it may take a long time and a lot of hardship getting there. Sit back and look dispassionately at it. You will come up with the obvious answer which is to get a degree and do something else. Then ask yourself if you would be satisfied with that. If you have to fly make a plan, if it includes a degree and waiting for the market to pick up then fine. Consider all the permutations. It could be argued that now is a very good time to start training as you would be qualified in say 2 years then if you instructed to build the hours another couple of years would pass and then you may be in a very good position to apply to the airlines at the start of an upturn in the market (just a guess as I have no more insight than you!) so that when the next downturn in the cycle occurs you are well away from the bottom of someones seniority list in your employer of choice.
My advice? Do what you feel you have to do, but make sure you review all your options and go into it with your eyes fully open. Do not assume you will get employed by an airline once you qualify, have a backup plan to keep current/ build hours and to earn cash. Degree? Certainly useful if you want to do something else and now would be a good time to get one, but don't think you must have one to enhance your pilot employablilty. I personally would learn a trade which can earn you good money if you can't get a flying job straight away............
Good luck
PP