PDF Documents

Posting your document as a PDF is the best option for documents that meet all of the following criteria:

• The end-user should not edit the document's content (unless filling out form fields).
• The document is complex (contains tables, graphs, charts, or form fields).

PDFs should be checked for accessibility using Adobe Acrobat Pro's Accessibility Checker. IT will need to activate your Adobe Creative Cloud Pro license before you will be able to use this program. Please open an IT ticket to have your license activated. Importantly, you can build the document in another program first (e.g. Microsoft Word, Google Docs, etc.) before exporting it to a PDF and sharing.

Using a source document

It is often easier to build and edit a document in Microsoft Word or Google Docs than in Adobe Acrobat. For this reason, it is wise to maintain a source document (a Word or Google Doc) and export the document to its final format (a PDF) when it is complete. If edits need to be made, you can make them in the source document easily and export the changed document to a PDF, rather than trying to edit the PDF directly. Remember that even if your source document passes an accessibility check, the PDF version must still be checked in Adobe.

Exporting source document to a PDF

If you do not have the source document

If you don't have access to a source document for your PDF, you can use Adobe Acrobat Pro to check the accessibility of the document. In the case that the document does not pass Adobe's Accessibility Checker, you will have to fix the PDF in Adobe Acrobat. Adobe's "Prepare for accessibility" tool should be used to tag the PDF, fix the reading order, and check the document for accessibility. Use the edit tool to add the footer required by Policy 720.1A.

A detailed example of PDF remediation in Adobe Acrobat Pro can be found below:

In the video above, I follow the How to Remediate a complex PDF with Adobe Acrobat Pro written guide.

The State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) provides a useful Canvas module on creating accessible PDF documents. Please note that this tutorial relies on Adobe Acrobat Pro. 

Still Have Questions?

Accessibility is constantly evolving to keep up with emerging technologies, and the information herein is not comprehensive. If you still have questions, please fill out our form. We recommend completing the Canvas training "Accessibility Training: How to Create Content that Works for Everyone" first!