How do I decide what education my career path actually needs?

You want to choose education deliberately, matched to what your path truly needs, rather than collecting credentials out of fear. That is the right instinct. Learning is a tool, and a tool is only worth picking up if it fits the job in front of you. Start from the destination and work back. What does the work you want actually demand, and what does it merely prefer? Sometimes the answer is a degree, sometimes a certificate, sometimes nothing but proof you can do the thing. Each has a cost in time and money, and the goal is the smallest investment that genuinely opens the door. Write down where you want to be in a few years, then list what stands between you and it. Match each gap to the leanest way to close it. Some gaps close with a class; others close with reps. When you choose from the gap rather than from anxiety, you rarely overpay, and you rarely waste a year.