Should I drop out of university to do an apprenticeship (and/or work on my own projects)?
Apologies for the long post, but I'd really appreciate any advice as I'm really stuck on what to do and don't have very long to decide, unless I want to accrue a load of debt.
So I'm 19, and I finished my A-levels last year (A* A* A in maths, graphic communication, computer science respectively) and took a gap year following that. For my NEA project in CS, I made a game, spending lots of my free time working on it and looking at learning resources without the teacher's help (also my CS teacher was useless), since it was something I genuinely enjoyed. Ever since then, I've been working on developing my own projects during my gap year, and I'm currently developing my first commercial game that I'll be releasing to steam later this year, all being well.
My real passion lies in game development, specifically solo dev as I like all the independence and multi-discipline work that comes with it, but I also have an etsy business where I sell crochet patterns as it's something that I enjoy doing aswell, and have built it up to the point of making around £100-150 every month of passive income (no external marketing, no new patterns, just leaving it be). All this to say, I am more interested in self-employment and working on my own projects and businesses than pursuing computer science at an academic level.
However, because there's no telling of whether any of my own games or anything will do well, I decided last minute that I'd go to university (of warwick) to do a computer science degree. I've always viewed this as a sort of backup option, as I had planned to do the degree alongside working on my own stuff in my free time, however, I'm beginning to reconsider whether it's even worth continuing the degree or not.
I've only finished the first week so far, so I'm aware that everything is still new and lots of people have doubts during the first few weeks, but I just can't help but feel as though I've rushed the decision to do a degree and that it doesn't align with what I want to do. It's not even homesickness or anything as I don't actually mind taking care of myself and living alone etc., it's just that I'm feeling a lot of regret about getting into so much debt for something that I view as a "backup" and don't feel completely committed to, as all I can think about it working on my game and almost viewing university work as an obstacle to what I want to do, which I'm aware it probably shouldn't be if you're gonna do a degree on it.
I feel like the option I'd prefer would be to drop out, work on my own projects/businesses whilst applying for apprenticeships, then do an apprenticeship (digital/IT probably) while working on my own stuff in my free time. Because that way, I'll have no debt, would be making money *whilst* getting experience, and would have a more clear routine without having to worry about whether I studied enough for the next exam and stuff like that, like I feel like going back to studying just isn't really for me right now.
The reason I'm hesitant about just waiting a few months before making this decision is because if I withdraw from the degree within the first 2 weeks, I don't have to pay any of the tuition fees and would only pay the rent for the days I stayed, so I'd only have to pay a few hundred which I'm fine with as I have a few thousand in savings from my etsy. If I were to stay however, then later decide that it isn't for me, I'd end up having to pay a lot of tuition fees plus more rent and other fees, that it would make dropping out much more of a financial committment compared to if I were to do it now.
Another thing is that because I'm only 19, I feel like I have my whole life to get a degree if I really wanted to, and getting one now when I'm feeling unsure about it and have other plans just doesn't seem like the best option for me. Like if I decided in the future that I'd wanna do a degree, then I can go ahead and do one once I'm a few years older, if I really wanted/needed to, and would likely have enough money/income then to pay for it without accruing tens of thousands of debt.
Also I have my worries about AI, and I fear that if I continue with this CS degree, then by the time I graduate, who knows what the state of AI would be and how much harder it might be to get a job. I mean it already seems almost impossible to get a job as a CS graduate right now, and that could very well be worse in a few years when I'd graduate, especially if I didn't manage to get internships or anything, as there are far too many applicants right now and not enough roles.
So I feel like working on my own projects/businesses a bit and betting on myself, and doing an apprenticeship if it doesn't work out, or in the meantime, would be a better option that avoids the debt, makes money and gives me experience that can be used to get other jobs (or I just continue in the same job).
Anyway, sorry about the long read, I just really need some advice as I'm not sure what to do at the moment, and am worried that dropping out might be the wrong call even if it's what is constantly in my mind right now.
TLDR: Should I drop out of a computer science degree at university after the first couple of weeks, to work on my own projects/businesses and/or get an apprenticeship instead?