I tried to answer you in the electronics area. It never accepted my posting. So here is my response.
I was interested in electronics in HS. I started attending a Jr College near me going for an electronics engineering degree and simultaneously took the electronics and math classes at a tech school. After 2 years I was forced to get a job. I started working for EMR Telemetry. Telemetry is transfer of data on a test vehicle to a receiving station to analyze the real time data. Started in the test department and later transfered to field service. While in house after I was made a Sr tech I wrote ECOs (Engineering Change Order) to fix design problems. In field service I installed, taught, and repaired the systems we sold including OEM equipment. Learned a lot from the scientists using our equipment. Working on the NASA wind turbines mandated by congress under Carter I learned that wind and solar power would only create a sliver of the power needed. They only worked in very selective locations. My avatar is the first NASA wind turbine located at NASA Plumbrook in Sandusky Ohio. I went up in it many times working on the telemetry equipment. Also spent even more time with the receiving equipment digitizing the FM data being digitized and sent out for analysis. Lots of travel. Went to all but 5 states, Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Idaho and Alaska. Went to countries on every continent except Antarctica. Almost went there once but the normal tech for there became available.