SilverandSore

Currently it is a factor, not necessarily at the regional level but as you move on to the major airlines. It is a requirement at most to have a degree but I imagine that will start to fade as the pool of qualified applicants and flow-thrus start to dwindle. A degree makes you more competitive at most places where it isn't a requirement, but there are exceptions to that. Besides, why would you want to skip 4 years of making stupid decisions in front of girls your age in a parent-free atmosphere!? I learned some of life's most important lessons in college!

In my opinion it does very little towards giving you an advantage in hiring. I think it's an over-priced degree that is worthless in most respects. Also, it invalidates my argument above, the part about 'making stupid decisions in the presence of girls your age'. Skip ER and go to a state college and get a business degree. Learn to fly on the side. A lot less money and a lot more fun. For the same amount of money at ER you can become a doctor.
I typically fly 3 day and occasionally 4 day trips. Most days are 7-10 hours with 2-3 legs. Overnights are typically 12-18 hours. I commute so I leave about 5 hours before checkin. It's 3-4 hours to either drive or jumpseat to work. We check in one hour before departure and update our charts (all electronic now, iPad, 2 apps, sync both and done). I'll wander down to the gate, usually stopping to grab a snack or two, and then get to the plane 45 minutes before departure. Meet the crew, walk around, and then start loading the flight plan or bs-ing with the Captain and crew. Well, who am I kidding, I'm always bs-ing with Captain and crew.
Most layovers are 12-18 hours. The hotel is provided by the company, single occupancy unless you have some game. They're typically located near restaurants, bars and shopping. Long overnights (over 16 hours) are typically in a downtown area. You've got time for a nice meal, some walking around, maybe a few beverages if the time is right. As you get more senior, the cities get nicer and take longer to get to. First it's Allentown, Panama City, Flint, then it's Boston, San Francisco, New York, then it's Paris, London and Tokyo. I'm always looking for the little hole-in-the-wall local restaurant/pub, there's a world of food to discover.
I changed careers so it took me some time before I got into flying. I was at a small commuter for a few months then a large regional for 9 years and then a legacy that merged with another. We're a ways off from single pilot operations. There are so many redundancies built into the system that it'll take years before the FAA will sign off on removing a pilot. The single biggest advancement I've seen in my short 13 years is that we're using iPads for our manuals. There are planes flying around that were built in the 60's. Yeah, the autopilot does a great job flying straight and level, descending, etc, but there is countless interaction between pilot and airplane even when that part is automated. Hell, we can't taxi off the ramp with intervening somewhere in the process. Remote control with cameras???! Yeah, right!No, you don't really sit back and relax and listen to music. You're talking with the other guy, waiting for your crew meal, watching where you're going, talking to ATC and maybe perusing a magazine cough cough, or book (aviation related of course). It's not as boring as you think, compared to say, sitting in a cubicle writing code and looking out the window in to the sky, like I did for 10 years.

Read above paragraph, sitting in a cubicle writing code...
This job has made me unemployable in any other job. Wait, you mean I need to sit at this desk for 8 hours today and be productive!? No way. There is so much freedom in the confines of a 3 day trip that you can't imagine going back to a job where you are accountable daily to meetings, emails, phone calls etc. When you're flying, you're doing your work and you aren't even thinking about it. There is no slacking off because it's so regimented and results oriented, I'm flying from A to B and this is everything I do to do that. When I worked for a large corporation in IT, it was exactly like the movie Office Space, we would dwadle about trying to waste time to get thru the morning so we could get to lunch, I produced maybe 15 minutes of real work in the first 3 hours, I'm not kidding!

Go to your local small airport and take an introductory ride with a small flying school. It typically costs less than $100 and you'll know immediately if it is for you. It's like crack after that, you can't stop until you're sitting in the left seat wondering where the last 20 years went!
Personally, I think it's one of the best careers out there. I see some that have only flown and have never had another career and it's hard for them to compare. I worked for a small company and a large corporation before becoming a pilot so I feel like I've got a different perspective. I can't imagine doing anything else so now the goal is to stay healthy and try to fly it out. Good luck!