[Anonymous]

What weigh on my mind the most are still mortal concerns like paying my mortgage and bills, saving up to have kids etc. Most of my decisions are directed at optimising the returns/sustainability of returns for my family. I think there are many others who also set the welfare of their families at top priority.

That the role of engineers is 'godly', contributing to long term welfare of nation, etc is to me a bit far-fetched/over-romanticized. You can do that by paying taxes or serving in the public sector, or even simply by being very siao on during ICT! I don't think the government perceives the engineering role in nation building to be that sacred. In the end, nation building still boils down to bread and butter factors like economics/GDP. Which sector is most lucrative/stable - we move in. Period. Make hay while sun shines. Set the sails to catch the winds of growth. By growing the pie and making absolute returns, there are more resources to go around and the nation prospers as a whole (of course there are long term issues of sustainability and exponential growth concerns (resource, energy security), but I will not discuss it here).

With prosperity, you can hire engineers (including foreigners if they are price competitive) to do all your infrastructural works, etc. Yes, the government's own concerns are also very earthly like us - the need to feed the citizens!

Don't get me wrong. Engineering is still an important field. It is driven by innovation and creates good, real value. As a nation we reap the returns via corporate taxes. The fact is more often than not, the return on investment for individuals (by this i mean education) for going into the engineering field locally pales as compared to some other sectors (legal, finance, medical). This is an issue with the structure of the industry. Our R&D still doesn't seem to be taking off, and we haven't quite managed to move up the value chain. Consequently, even the top engineering minds aren't interested in being paid relatively low wages, hence they are moving into finance. I don't think they their considerations are lofty.

But of course, to each his own, and if one has perceptions of grandeur about his/her own work (like doctors!), that's good motivation and you should carry on. But I plead that you refrain from putting down the role of other sectors because if those sectors are lucrative and contribute economically, they are also important.

I digress here. As for skillsets needed in the finance industry, I think it is really quite varied. Accountants, bachelor in finance folks are all useful in the sector. In certain fields like quant finance, they look for people who are stronger in mathematics. For intermediate level complexity, engineers tend to be able to meet up to the challenge. For more complex modelling, they still go for PhD in pure math/sciences, rather than engineers actually. You can tell with a quick check on eFinancialCareers.sg.