This 22 December 2016 U. S. Department of Labor Unemployment Insurance Program Letter (UIPL) provides guidance to states about the interpretation of “contract” and “reasonable assurance of future employment” in determining eligibility for unemployment insurance of adjunct faculty members in higher education. The guidance in this UIPL supersedes the guidance provided in the UIPL of December 1986. The letter recognizes the dramatic changes since 1986 in the employment model higher education uses and seeks to clarify the conditions that make adjunct (especially part-time) faculty members eligible or not eligible for unemployment compensation during periods when school is not in session.