Recent updates to federal accessibility regulations under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) are changing how public universities manage digital content. As a public institution, the University of Memphis must ensure that digital materials—including dissertations and theses—are accessible to individuals with disabilities.

This means that your dissertation is no longer only evaluated for academic quality and formatting. It must also be usable by people who rely on assistive technologies such as screen readers, keyboard navigation, captioning systems, and text-to-speech tools.

If you are writing your dissertation using Microsoft Word, LaTeX, or Adobe Acrobat Pro, accessibility should be considered throughout the writing and formatting process rather than added at the end.

This guide explains what Title II accessibility means, why it matters, and how to create an accessible dissertation using the tools most commonly used by graduate students.

What Is Title II Accessibility?

Title II of the ADA requires public institutions to ensure that their digital content is accessible to people with disabilities. In practical terms, this means your dissertation should be:

Perceivable

Users must be able to access information in multiple ways (text, audio, visual).

Operable

Users should be able to navigate the document using keyboards or assistive technologies.

Understandable

Content should be logically structured and readable.

Robust

The document should work with screen readers and accessibility software.

These principles are closely aligned with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 AA, which are widely used as the standard for digital accessibility in higher education.

Why Accessibility Matters for Your Dissertation

An inaccessible dissertation can create barriers for:

Blind or low-vision readers using screen readers
Individuals with mobility impairments who navigate by keyboard
Readers with dyslexia or cognitive disabilities
Users relying on mobile accessibility tools
Researchers accessing archived institutional documents years later

Accessibility also improves usability for everyone by creating cleaner organization, clearer navigation, and more professional digital documents.

Because dissertations are archived and distributed electronically, they are considered official digital university content and fall within institutional accessibility obligations.

General Accessibility Principles

Regardless of whether you use Word, LaTeX, or Adobe Acrobat Pro, accessible dissertations share several characteristics.

Use Proper Heading Structure

Headings create the navigational structure used by screen readers.

Good practice:

Heading 1 → Chapter Titles
Heading 2 → Major Sections
Heading 3 → Subsections

Avoid:

Manually enlarging or bolding text instead of using actual heading styles

Screen readers depend on semantic heading structures to allow users to jump through sections efficiently.

Provide Alternative Text for Images

Any meaningful image, chart, graph, or diagram must include alternative text (“alt text”).

Alt text should:

Briefly explain the purpose or meaning of the image
Convey essential information
Avoid phrases like “image of” or “picture of”

Example:

Bad:

“Chart”

Better:

“Bar chart comparing graduation rates between online and face-to-face students from 2020–2024.”

Decorative images that add no informational value can usually be marked as decorative.

Use Accessible Tables

Tables should be used only for actual data—not layout.

Accessible tables should:

Include header rows
Avoid merged or split cells when possible
Maintain simple structure
Include clear column labels

Complex tables are difficult for screen readers to interpret.

Ensure Color Is Not the Only Meaning

Avoid relying solely on color to communicate information.

Problematic example:

“Items highlighted in red are critical.”

Better:

“Critical items are highlighted in red and marked with an asterisk.”

This helps users with color blindness or grayscale displays.

Use Meaningful Hyperlinks

Avoid vague links such as:

“Click here”
“Read more”

Instead:

“Review the University accessibility policy”
“Download the data analysis appendix”

Screen readers often generate lists of links independently from surrounding text.

Maintain Good Contrast and Readability

Use:

High contrast between text and background
Readable font sizes
Consistent formatting
Sufficient spacing

Avoid:

Light gray text
Tiny fonts
Excessive decorative formatting

Accessibility in Microsoft Word

Microsoft Word is one of the easiest environments for creating accessible dissertations because many accessibility tools are built directly into the software.

Recommended Workflow

Use Built-In Styles

Always use Word Styles:

Heading 1
Heading 2
Normal text
Caption styles

Do not manually format headings.

Add Alt Text

To add alt text:

Right-click the image
Select “View Alt Text”
Enter a concise description

Use the Accessibility Checker

Word includes a built-in accessibility checker.

To run it:

Go to “Review”
Select “Check Accessibility”

The checker identifies:

Missing alt text
Improper heading order
Table issues
Contrast concerns
Reading order problems

Students should run this tool regularly throughout the writing process—not only at the end.

Create Accessible Lists

Use Word’s actual:

Bulleted lists
Numbered lists

Avoid manually typing:

Hyphens
Numbers
Indentation

Export Carefully to PDF

When saving as PDF:

Use “Save As” or “Export”
Select PDF
Ensure “Document structure tags for accessibility” is enabled

This preserves headings and accessibility metadata.

Accessibility in LaTeX

LaTeX can produce accessible documents, but accessibility often requires more deliberate configuration. Historically, LaTeX PDFs were difficult for screen readers because they lacked tagging and structural metadata. Modern packages and workflows have improved this substantially.

Recommended Practices

Use Semantic Structure

Use actual document commands:

\section{}
\subsection{}
\chapter{}

Avoid manually formatting section titles.

Add Accessible Figure Descriptions

Packages such as:

tagpdf
axessibility
pdfcomment

can help improve accessibility support.

Because accessibility support varies by package and compiler, students should coordinate with advisors or technical support staff early in the process.

Use Unicode Fonts

Modern compilers like:

XeLaTeX
LuaLaTeX

often produce more accessible output than older workflows.

Test the PDF Output

Even if the LaTeX source is structured properly, the exported PDF must still be tested using:

Adobe Acrobat Accessibility Checker
Screen readers
PAC (PDF Accessibility Checker)

Consider Hybrid Workflows

Some students draft in LaTeX but finalize accessibility remediation in Adobe Acrobat Pro after PDF export. This is increasingly common for dissertations heavy in mathematics or technical notation.

Accessibility in Adobe Acrobat Pro

Adobe Acrobat Pro is frequently used as the final accessibility remediation tool before dissertation submission.

Acrobat allows you to:

Inspect document tags
Fix reading order
Add alt text
Repair tables
Run accessibility checks

Key Features

Accessibility Checker

In Acrobat:

Open “Tools”
Select “Accessibility”
Run “Full Check”

The report identifies accessibility issues requiring review.

Tags Pane

Tags define document structure for screen readers.

You should verify:

Proper heading hierarchy
Paragraph tagging
Table structure
Figure tagging

Reading Order Tool

The reading order determines how assistive technologies move through the document.

This is especially important for:

Multi-column layouts
Text boxes
Embedded figures
Complex formatting

Add Document Metadata

Accessible PDFs should include:

Title
Author
Language settings

This improves compatibility with assistive technologies.

Special Considerations for Equations and STEM Content

Mathematical notation can present accessibility challenges.

Students using equations should:

Use MathType or Word Equation Editor when possible
Avoid equations inserted only as images
Ensure equations remain machine-readable

For LaTeX-heavy dissertations:

Accessibility expectations are evolving rapidly
Full compliance may require additional remediation tools
Consultation with graduate school staff or accessibility specialists is recommended

Complex STEM dissertations may require individualized accessibility review.

Common Accessibility Mistakes

Frequent issues in dissertations include:

Missing alt text
Improper heading structure
Untagged PDFs
Scanned text saved as images
Poor table design
Color-only meaning
Broken reading order
Manual formatting instead of semantic styles

Most of these issues are preventable if accessibility is addressed early.

Recommended Dissertation Accessibility Workflow

A practical workflow for graduate students is:

During Writing

Use structured headings
Add alt text immediately
Use accessible tables and lists
Run Word accessibility checks regularly

Before PDF Export

Verify styles and document structure
Confirm links and captions
Review figure descriptions

After PDF Export

Open in Adobe Acrobat Pro
Run Full Accessibility Check
Review tags and reading order
Correct remaining issues

Final Review

Test with keyboard navigation
Review with screen reader tools if possible
Confirm document metadata

Accessibility should be viewed as part of professional scholarly communication rather than as an additional compliance task. An accessible dissertation is more usable, more durable, and more equitable for future readers. Students who integrate accessibility practices from the beginning of the dissertation process will generally produce cleaner documents with fewer last-minute revisions and fewer submission issues.

More Info

ADA Compliance (Making Your File Accessible)