; and (D) with respect to a graduate program, a period defined by the institution that is based on the length of the educational program. . (c) Recognition of accrediting agency or association Section 496 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 1099b ) is amended— (1) in subsection (a)(4)— (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking and at the end; and (B) by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting the following: (B) such agency or association demonstrates the ability to review, evaluate, and assess the quality of any instruction delivery model or method such agency or association has or seeks to include within its scope of recognition, without giving preference to or differentially treating a particular instruction delivery model or method offered by an institution of higher education or program except that, in a case in which the instruction delivery model allows for the separation of the student from the instructor— (i) the agency or association requires the institution to have processes through which the institution establishes that the student who registers in a course or program is the same student who participates in, including, to the extent practicable, testing or other assessment, and completes the program and receives the academic credit; and (ii) the agency or association requires that any process used by an institution to comply with the requirement under clause (i) does not infringe upon student privacy and is implemented in a manner that is minimally burdensome to the student; and (C) if such an agency or association evaluates or assesses the quality of competency-based education programs, the agency’s or association’s evaluation or assessment— (i) shall address effectively the quality of an institution’s competency-based education programs as set forth in paragraph (5), except that the agency or association is not required to have separate standards, procedures, or policies for the evaluation of competency-based education