[gerakinis]

Spend 9 months working on something and learn via the work. Don't spend 9 months simply studying programming information. ( Bonus points if you are getting paid by someone else while you are learning... but be clear about that upfront. )

Pick a problem, a tool set and get experienced. You will not gain as much if you simply read across multiple applications and disciplines.

For a focus on the academics, and not the practical, I would not suggest going it alone unless you are really that strange type of person that gets math intuitively.