What can be said on the above? Should I complete a Mechanical Engineering Degree instead? I wonder which will provide better opportunities down the road, and would it make it easier to land the first job?
Really depends on what you enjoy doing. Both jobs offer so many opportunities that you can't really predict where the growth will be. Take materials science for instance. You could work in advanced polymers, piezoelectric materials, etc., and be considered on the cutting edge. You can be a metallurgist and still make decent money.
Both will offer you financial stability. Your attitude and effort in a specific field are what writes your ticket.
personally, i think mechanical engineer is easiler to find a job than materials engineer. Try to understand more in the job descriptions and duties in job-search.com. Of course, both can work at cutting-edge technology, it depends how many company work on this area and the competition.
There are more mechanical engineering jobs, but there are more people with mechanical eng degrees, so I don't think jobs are easier to find in one or the other. Either way is a good career choice, depending on your interests. I went with materials and never regreted it.