I've recently graduated from the University of Michigan with a master's degree in electrical engineering. My area of focus was solid state and nanotechnology. Before that, I received my bachelor's in electrical engineering with a minor in creative writing from the University of Michigan. In my experience with electrical engineering courses, teachers/professors will always try to throw you off with problems that require a different approach than you may be familiar with from homework or in-class examples. So, if you ask me, the key to success is to understand all of the tools that are available to you and how they might be used (rather than learning how to solve problems one specific way).