How To Make Documents Accessible

To ensure your Word, PowerPoint, PDF, and other documents meet ADA accessibility standards, review the resources below on creating accessible files.

Accessible Documents

Quick Tips for Word

Images - If an image presents content or has a function, you must provide an equivalent alternative text for this image.
Headings - Heading levels should represent the structure of the document. (e.g. Heading 1, Heading 2, Heading 3, etc.)
Links - Use descriptive link text.

Tip Tool

Accessibility Checker - Word has an Accessibility Checker for identifying and repairing many accessibility issues.

Quick Tips for PowerPoint

Slide Theme - Be sure to choose a theme with good contrast and with simple backgrounds.
Slide layouts - These will ensure information on the slides have the correct heading structure and reading order.
Images - PowerPoint presentations usually include images, and these images need alt texts.
Links - Use descriptive link text.

Tip Tool

Accessibility Checker - PowerPoint includes a tool that will identify many common accessibility issues.

Quick Tips for PDF

The best and easiest way of creating accessible PDF is to create accessible Word first, and then convert it into PDF. Microsoft Word provides a rich structure and style for you to draft your document.

A document created in Word should contain almost all the information necessary for an accessible PDF.

Tip Tool

Accessibility Checker - The built-in accessibility checker "Full Check" is a good tool to use with a new PDF to identify what issues need to be addressed.

Accessible Forms

Accessible Web Content

For web content creators

How to create accessible web content in Modern Campus CMS.

Modern Campus CMS

For faculty and students

How to make course material accessible in an LMS and download alternative formats.

Canvas Resources

Social Media Accessibility

Quick Tips for Facebook

  • Edit the machine-generated alternative text for images to be more descriptive.
  • Provide closed captions for videos and text description for audio.
  • Avoid using animated GIF format.
  • Ensure sufficient color contrast is used.

Quick Tips for Twitter

  • Add or edit alternative texts for images.
  • Provide closed captions for videos and text description for audio.
  • Put mentions and hashtags at the end of your tweets.
  • Avoid using acronyms in your posts
  • Avoid using animated GIF format.

Quick Tips for Instagram

  • Add or edit alternative texts for images.
  • Provide closed captions for videos and text description for audio.
  • Put hashtags in the first comment rather than in the post caption.
  • Avoid using animated GIF format.

Miscellaneous

Quick Tips for LinkedIn

  • Add or edit alternative text for images and ensure they are descriptive. 
  • Provide closed captioning for videos on LinkedIn.
  • Ensure sufficient color contrast is used.
  • Use semantic structure for contents to increase readability.

Quick Tips for Outlook

Images - Add alt text to images.
Graphics - describe the shape or SmartArt graphic.
Charts - describe the chart and its context to someone who cannot see it.
Links - add meaningful hyperlink text and ScreenTips.
Color Contrast - use sufficient contrast for text and background colors.
Font Size - use a larger font size (11pt or larger), sans serif fonts.

Tip Tool

Accessibility Checker - Outlook has a built-in tool that will identify many common accessibility issues.

Quick Tips for Audio and Video

Transcript - Provide transcript for audio content.
Closed Caption - Provide Closed Caption (CC) for video content.
Audio description - Provide description of important visual information in a video.
YouTube: Learn how to make your .

Additional Resources

  • Video Tutorials for Document Accessibility (The University of Alabama)
    •  (By MSFTEnable)
  • Making Email Messages with Images Accessible (Outlook and email marketing platforms)