Questions that change the cost of a decision, asked before the decision rather than after.
Accreditation affects whether a programme's credits transfer, whether a qualification is recognised by employers and licensing boards, and in many cases whether federal aid can be used at all. It is a yes-or-no fact about an institution, not a matter of opinion.
It is published, and it is worth confirming from the accreditor's own list rather than from the school's marketing.
A programme that takes an extra year costs an extra year of living expenses, an extra year out of full-time earnings, and in some cases an extra year of aid applications. Those are usually larger numbers than the differences in tuition that people compare.
Ask what proportion of students finish in the advertised time, and what the common reasons are when they do not.
If you have studied before, how much of it counts is decided by the receiving school and varies more than most people expect. The answer changes both the length and the cost of what is in front of you.
Ask for the evaluation in writing before enrolling rather than after. A verbal 'most of it should transfer' is not an answer you can plan against.
The two are rarely the same cost once you account for travel, equipment, and whether a programme expects you to be available at fixed times. Neither is automatically cheaper.
Work out what a normal week would look like for you under each, including the parts nobody puts in a prospectus.
Send it over. A person reads every message, and if the real answer belongs to your school's aid office we will say so.