Microsoft Word Accessibility Checklist

In order to be accessible on their own and to simplify the process of producing a compliant accessible PDF, the following criteria should be met when authoring documents in Microsoft Word:

Note that google docs cannot be used to export accessible PDF documents.

Metadata and Basic Information

• The Title field is set in the document information (File > Info).
• The file extension is .docx, not .doc.
• The filename is human-readable (i.e., not 283793854.docx).
• Author metadata in the document information accurately represents the organization (i.e. Grayson College) and not an individual, if appropriate.

Structure and Relationships

• Document headings describe the topic or purpose of the section.
• Headings are identified via Microsoft Word's Styles system (not only a visual typography change). The Document's Title should be Heading 1 (Outline Level 1), with main document sections using heading 2 (Outline Level 2), and so forth. (You can confirm the document's structure with the Navigation Pane. View > Show > Navigation Pane)
• Headings are used sequentially and hierarchically, and heading levels are not skipped. (In other words, don't skip from heading 2 to heading 5, for instance)
• Non-heading text is not assigned to a heading style.
• Your document uses no more than six heading levels.
• Bulleted or Numerical lists are created with Word's list tools (do not manually type numbers and add tab stops to fake a list).
• Lists aren't interrupted by a paragraph or other items.
• Text boxes are avoided. (If you need extra layout flexibility, consider transitioning to Adobe InDesign, which provides much more freedom to create various accessible layouts)
• If text boxes are needed, they should be set to the "In line with text"  layout/text wrap options. Be sure that the anchors for the text boxes appear in the order you wish the content to be read.
• If columns are needed, they are created using Word's column tools with section breaks as appropriate.
• Running headers, page numbers, and other such elements that occur on every page are laid out using Word's header and footer system.
• All information in a header or footer that is critical for a user to perceive is also repeated in the body of the document. (Headers and footers are hidden from screen readers and assistive devices.)

Text Formatting

• Hyphenation across paragraphs is minimized, if possible
• Justified alignment usage is limited, if possible
• Extra white-space characters are avoided (e.g., multiple hard returns, multiple spaces, excessive tab stops). Rather, spacing is controlled via layout options & paragraph styles.
• Uppercase text is avoided except for acronyms
• Underline is only used for hyperlinks
• Italics usage is minimized as it can be difficult to read for extended blocks

Images

• All non-decorative images have a descriptive alternative text (alt text) set.
• Images that convey text are avoided except for official logos. If images with text are used, that text must be included in the image's alternative text.
• Decorative images are marked as decorative. (including decorative photographs that do not convey any new/relevant information as well as graphics and shapes/dividers).
• Non-decorative images are set to "In Line With Text" in the Layout /Text Wrapping options.

Navigation

• If a table of contents is included, it is created using Microsoft Word's Table of Contents feature.

Hyperlinks

• Link text is descriptive of the purpose/location of the link, rather than the URL or generic terms like "click here."
• Links are identifiable through hyperlink styling (underlined and usually a contrasting color).
• If an image is used as a hyperlink, the alternative text of the image is the descriptive link text.
• Alternate descriptions for links are added as a "ScreenTip" in the Edit Hyperlink dialog
  • For a web page, this should be the webpage's "title" - it can be found in the browser tab or the