Accelerated program with the backing by Picard and Janeway according to the audio logs.
The timeline for this season is confusing to figure out. It could be anywhere from still being, 2401 to 2405 or 2411
It's definitely not a year later. Most likely 2 or more. Raffi got canned from Starfleet and dumped by 7. I find it hard to believe that happened in one year. Wait thus is Raffi so it's possible. Lol