There is a lot of interesting work in the space (I recommend checking out the Wyant College of Optical Sciences) but you will need a deep Physics and Materials Science background. Same with semiconductor fabrication and packaging.

Leetcode ain't cutting it. If you want to do cool shit, hit the books and learn real engineering. Arizona [0], Rochester [1], UCF (Florida) [2], and CU Boulder [3] are the best distance learning programs in this space, but all expect a deep background in Physics to succeed.

Additionally, most private sector employers in the space remain in the US, Canada, China, and France (but increasingly integrated with the US thanks to the CQE).

[0] - https://optics.arizona.edu/prospective-students/graduate-pro...

[1] - https://www.hajim.rochester.edu/optics/graduate/ms-home.html

[2] - https://creol.ucf.edu/academics/graduate-programs/masters-pr...

[3] - https://www.colorado.edu/ecee/academics/online-programs/ms-e...