Creating Accessible PDF Documents in Microsoft Word
Learn how to create accessible PDF documents in Microsoft Word for assistive technologies such as Screen Readers and Braille devices. To create a fully accessible document, authors must incorporate the following principles into their documents:
If you have not done so, please update Microsoft Word to the latest Edition of Microsoft Office 365. Please see this link for detailed information on how to update Microsoft Office 365. If you are having trouble successfully updating Microsoft Office 365, you may want to delete it entirely and install a new version of Microsoft Office 365. See this Wiki article on How To Install Microsoft Office 365.
Creating Accessible PDF Documents In Microsoft Word
Launch Microsoft Word and Open your document.
Add a Title to your document in the File tab in the top left corner of the screen. Click Info (on Windows) or Properties (on Mac) from the drop down menu.
Add the title of the document in the Title text field.
Click the Styles button to use headings to organize your document. Use them in order: Heading 1, Heading 2, Heading 3, etc. Use a Sans Serif font like Aptos, Calibri, Arial, etc. at 12-point font or larger.
Click on the Review tab at the top of your document. Click Check Accessibility to scan for current accessibility issues.
An Accessibility Assistant window will appear on the right of the screen identifying each issue and how to fix it. Fix all issues.
Please refer to this Guide for detailed information on how to resolve Accessibility Warnings and Errors in Microsoft Word.
Once you have resolved all the document’s accessibility issues, click File in the left corner of the screen. Click Save As > PDF.
Note: Do not create a PDF from the Print window in Word, as this will decrease your document’s accessibility.