I think this is easier to answer in hindsight don't you think? I mean does anyone who does an Arts or Social Science degree really go purely as career advancement? If its science, engineering medicine then youre not going to spend your 3 or 4 years forming bands are you? I did an arts degree and my main reasons were as follows - and in order

Form a band - tick
Edit the university paper - tick
Meet a nice girl - tick
Go to more gigs than anyone else back home - tick
Be pretentious and arty and read loads of books and try to dress like a beatnik/1996 Brian Wilson - double tick
Live with people who'll be your mates for ever - little tick
Career - incy wincey spider tick (in Arial 8).

Regardless of the time I went aren't the above in no reasonable order the reason anyone not doing a vocational degree goes to university