> The traditional wisdom that I'd read repeatedly until last year was job experience triumphs college and the opportunity cost is not worth it which is why I took the job

That is with the assumption have to take out a lot of student loans for tuition.

> Would you say this is still the case considering the events of last year? Does the compensation and tax differential across the pond make the investment worth it to join the US labor pool down the line?

A lot of people say yes, including Europeans.

I am an American and from what I heard American degrees are very valuable across that small pond. Get your education. A bachelor's is the basic minimum. If your college offers a masters in some tech with a similar ride, take it as well.