Which is better:having a university degree or doing ACCA?

Well, this really depends on the person as with both you're guaranteed to get a well-paid job.

If you have your Degree in hand, and at the same time you're a Chartered Accountant, you're already well-off.

However, you can start with ACCA, and it'll bring you a bright career. If on the other side you opt for undergoing a University Degree and not doing ACCA, then its really not worth. But ACCA+Degree in Accouting. That's the best choice someone can have.

I have both a degree and an ACCA, and from what I've seen in the real world employers did tend to favour those opting for an ACCA rather than a degree holder. These are the reasons; (1) the employer is able to get someone who is still studying but is willing to work at the same time, (2) the employer has to offer a higher salary to a person with a degree as compared to someone who has just started his/her ACCA.

However, you should note that nowadays audit/accounting firms (mostly the big 4) are recruiting more and more those already having a first degree (normally in the accounting and finance field) rather than those with HSC who have just left school and starting their ACCA - unless you are only left 2 or 3 papers and have some prior relevant working experience. So you're better off to start in the industry and if you want you can move to an audit firm after some time.

And to add to Gices last paragraph, that actually depends to be honest as it's not always the case. I've seen it while I was on my assignments for several clients - it can be generally said that an ACCA tends to earn more and you do have very good chances to land a job. However, those with a degree do earn quite decently as compared to those with ACCA and some even more in some cases.

So at the end of the day it all depends on your personal choice.

When it comes to the job market, it all depends on demand & supply. If there are no vacancies, then with either, you'll still be unemployed. So what you need to look at is the job sector trend and try to see whether on completion of your studies, there's still going to be a decent amount of vacancies in your field.

In an ideal world, either should allow you to land a job easily, however in Mauritius that's not the case. I've known many freshers who struggle to find work in their line of studies and have had to settle on doing something else after months of trying to find work in their field.

A University degree gives you more flexibility in my opinion because if for instance, you did a degree in Ecomonics, you could also apply for a job in the Environment or Science sector. With ACCA, you're restricted to that and only that field.

ACCA is combined work and study. You really need to acquire the accounting experience whilst studying but after completion, the prospects are really good albeit you need to stay in that industry forever.

My opinion is based on a pragmatic approach to choosing a career. However to answer the second part of your question, I'll have to admit that people who've chosen to do ACCA tend to earn more than the average person with a degree.