Digital Accessibility is the ability for people with disabilities to effectively and efficiently access digital resources with substantially equivalent ease of use and timeliness.
Per The Ohio State University Digital Accessibility Policy (PDF), “all digital information and digital services acquired, developed or delivered by any unit must be accessible and in compliance with the Minimum Digital Accessibility Standards.” Anyone, including faculty, staff and students, who creates or publishes digital content at Ohio State is responsible for making it accessible. If your department or area does not have a Digital Accessibility Coordinator, Designee, or support for this work, please speak with your supervisor or department leadership about how best to support these requirements moving forward.
To help us work together to meet these requirements, the list of resources below provides links to more information, training and frequently asked questions.
Resources
Digital Accessibility Center
The Digital Accessibility Center is a partnership between The Ohio State University ADA Coordinator’s Office, part of the Office of Institutional Equity and the Office of Student Life Disability Services.
- The Ohio State University Digital Accessibility Policy (PDF)
- Minimum Digital Accessibility Standards (MDAS)
Digital Accessibility Services
The Ohio State University’s Digital Accessibility Services provides resources and assistance to those producing digital content, acquiring or building digital products, or who are serving as a Digital Accessibility Coordinator.
Frequently Asked Questions
The basic steps to create an accessible PDF include:
- Optimize the source document for accessibility; for example, by providing sufficient color contrast between text and background and using semantic features like real headings (as opposed to big, bold text).
- Save the file as a tagged PDF.
- Provide metadata for the PDF, such as the document language.
- Create and edit tags (similar to HTML tags) to give structural meaning to the document and allow navigation with assistive technology.
- Ensure that the reading order — how the content is presented to screen reader users — is logical.
- Ensure that the tab order (when the PDF has form fields or links) is sequentially correct.
- Check your PDF with automated and manual testing to ensure accessibility.
For detailed training on how to complete the steps above, please see the Digital Accessibility Services page on PDF Accessibility for available training in BuckeyeLearn.
An automated accessibility report is the first step in checking to make sure your PDF meets accessibility standards. A report will also be required to be included when submitting a Web Request to upload a PDF to any of our public websites.
An accessibility report is an automated summary of findings produced by Adobe Acrobat Pro that details whether a PDF conforms to the accessibility rules set forth by the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.0). Rules include, but are not limited to, the presence of alternative text for images and figures, the presence of appropriate metadata, the correct implementation of lists, and the presence of a document title.
An accessibility report can be created and exported using Adobe Acrobat Pro. All employees should have this program installed on their computer by default. If you do not have Adobe Acrobat Pro installed, you can sign into Adobe.com with your University email to gain access or reach out to the Help Desk for further assistance.
Learn how to create an accessibility report
All documents posted to our websites must meet accessibility standards, including Microsoft Office documents.
The preferred file format for posting documents to our websites is a PDF. Microsoft Office documents should only be posted when that file format is required for the function of the document (e.g. templates meant to be edited or data shared in an Excel file).
Our standard Microsoft Office document templates are being reviewed and will be updated to ensure they meet accessibility requirements. If you are using those documents along with applying learnings from the Office Document Accessibility training (e.g., using appropriate structure and headers, watching color contrast, applying alt text to images, etc.) your document should meet the standards of accessibility.
Look for more information about template updates to come in early 2024.
For a list of quick guides or to see all the training available, please see the Digital Accessibility Services page on Office Document Accessibility.
Yes, there are some third-party vendors that specialize in document and PDF accessibility remediation. Check with your Accessibility Coordinator, department designee or manager for options. There is a cost associated with working with third-party vendors, but your department or area may find this a good solution.
These requirements apply to all documents. An audit of all documents currently posted on our websites is underway.
When submitting a Workfront Web Request, the requestor is required to note if documents attached to the request are intended to be uploaded to the website. If they are, the documents must be fully accessible and a passing accessibility report must be included.
The Ohio State University Digital Accessibility Center staff provide weekly office hours every Thursday from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. to help answer your questions about accessibility topics. Visit the Digital Accessibility Center website to learn more and get the Zoom link for the virtual office hours (OSU login required).