New to Python and programming, need some mentoring!

[sparkz_alot]

so that would mean back-end development (as I have been told)

I believe you've been told wrong. Python is not limited to just back-end development. Python is a very robust language and thousands of programs have been created using Python alone.

This is not the best place to be looking for 'mentors'. We are here to help and guide people in the use of Python and it's tools, not to teach the language. There are many, many courses out there that teach the language, please see our Python Resources for a brief list. Just make sure the course is teaching Python 3 and not Python 2.

As for 'real world', that depends on what your real world is. Look around you and see how things are done, is there something that is currently being done by hand or is overly cumbersome? If so, can you improve it? Check with family and friends and ask what would make their job easier. An example, we have one member who is a volunteer at a food bank, where every thing was done by hand, inventory, food in and food out, expenses, etc. She took it upon herself to create a program that took care of all that, with an easy user interface, not just for her location, but several, allowing management to pull up various reports for each site.

Best of luck to you and above all, have fun.