Well....since you have stated your intentions, lets
start.......
Lets assume you are from either CSE, MPE or EEE...from what I know
these are the following specialisation that it might offer for the
following disciplines and they are not exhaustive:
CSE - Geotechnical studies, structural engineering or
transportational engineering
MPE : Robotics, Materials Science, Applied MEchanics,
Thermodynamics, precision engineering .....etc etc
EEE : Computer, Microelectronics, Communications, Power and
Machines, Control
So if an engineer is to bank on one specialisation and make it as
his career choice, and if that industry faces a severe downturn (
for eg. in the semiconductor industry and some industry faces
cyclical downturns), then he may/ may not face retrenchment. In
addition, manufacturing facilities and even R&D facilities are
shifting abroad (no prizes for guessing where they go) and will the
engineer be certain of his employbility.
As for accounting /auditing.....being in the audit line for a few
years, I have audited companies in various industries and the
accounts does not change much..... (maybe some industries have to
adopt certain accounting standards or treatment that is not common
but it does not deviate from like EEE to MPE) so the portability is
there.
Apart from accounting in the banking sector, an accountant can
switch from a manufacturing company to a freight forwarding company
or IT/professional services company and handle their books with
some ease. Off course it is preferably if they have the relevant
experience but so far the accountant friends that I have does
switch from one industry to another.
So the advantage over here is skills PORTABILTIY.
Anyway my specialisation is in EE and IMHO, getting a CPA rather
than MBA is my goal in managing an engineering company with both
technical and financial skills sets. Just for your info, if you
look at the annual reports, the CEO of Singtel is CPA,CEO of
Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing is also CPA. Both are
promoted from the ranks from being CFOs in their companies
then.
Does the CEO of Singtel know about mobile planning or the
difference in the power amplifiers used in CDMA or GSM base
stations? or the CEO of CSM know what is 0.18u or 65nm technology
or what is the semicon road map? Both are well verse in group
financial reporting or SOX (for CSM cos it is listed in Nasdaq) or
treasury financing.......
Off course there are reports saying that CEOs of big GLC companies
are engineering trained so as to counter claim that engineers are
not the worst paid but do note that Singapore in the early years
are industrialising and are in need of engineers......most
ministers are also engineering trained.......so my view is that the
next generation of CEOs will come from within their finance
department.......
These are just my views but I think the present cohort of people
who are taking accountancy and those who's grades are good enough
to choose an engineering degree but opt for a business/accountancy
degree will also think likewise......
Instead of learning all the technical things like Laplace
transform, Fourier Transform, Vector Calculus........a currency
translation gain/loss can turn a company into hundreds of millions
of profits or loss (Just look at the recent
SembMarine)........funny isnt it???? 
