Your course likely contains a variety of documents—PDFs, Word files, slide decks, and spreadsheets. We want all of these to be accessible, but how you achieve that depends on where the document came from. The good news: in many cases, you won't need to fix them yourself.
Take the Path of Least Resistance
Before You Remediate
Remediating documents manually should be a last resort. Before you start, ask yourself:
- Is this document essential to my course?
If it doesn't directly support your learning goals, consider removing it.
- Can the Library help?
For readings and published materials, contact the Library. They can often provide an accessible version from the publisher or link to an HTML alternative.
- Can I use a simpler format?
If you created the document yourself, consider converting it to a Canvas page or Word document—both are much easier to make accessible than PDFs.
If none of these options work and the document is essential, then it's time to remediate.
Converting PDFs into Word Documents
If you do not have the original Word document, export your PDF to Word using Adobe Acrobat. You can do so by following these steps:
- In Acrobat's menu, go to File > Export a PDF > Microsoft Word > Word Document.
Then use the accessibility checker as outlined below. You can also use SensusAccess to convert a PDF to a Word document.
If you want to ensure the Word document cannot be edited, then go to the Review tab and select "Restrict Editing," choosing the most appropriate option.
Improving Word Document Accessibility
If you have the original Word document (or have converted one from PDF), use Word's built-in accessibility checker to help you find issues.
- How to Use: Go to the Review tab on the Word ribbon. Click on Check Accessibility.
- What it Does: The Accessibility Checker pane will open on the right side of your screen, listing any issues.
- The Checker will suggest the issues that are easy fixes, as well as guide you through fixing more complicated issues.
Saving Word Documents as Accessible PDFs
If your document must remain a PDF, you can remediate in Word and then export back to PDF.
To save the Word document as an accessible PDF, follow these steps:
- In Word's menu, go to File > Save As (or File > Save a Copy) and choose where to save your PDF.
- In the Save As window, change the Save As type to PDF (*.pdf).
- Select the available accessibility options from Microsoft 365's Create accessible PDFs page.
- Windows: Options > Document structure tags for accessibility checkbox
- Mac: Best for electronic distribution and accessibility (uses Microsoft online service)
Do not save a Word document as a PDF using the print function.
SensusAccess for Document Conversion
SensusAccess allows anyone at Brown to convert an array of inaccessible file types (e.g. image-based PDFs, JPEG photos, audio files) into more accessible formats. It uses optical-character recognition (OCR) to make texts searchable, selectable, and screen-reader friendly.
You can use SensusAccess to covert a PDF to a Word document. You can also generate a tagged PDF, though you will need to check the document for accuracy.
The service can also be used to automatically convert documents into a range of alternate media including audiobooks, e-books, and digital Braille. In your course, you can choose to provide alternative formats on your own, or highlight this resource for students in case they would like to generate alternative formats that best suit their learning style.
To use the tool, visit the SensusAccess page and scroll to the Use SensusAccess section. To learn about the tool and accessibility best practices, visit the SensusAccess E-Learning Course.
Additional Resources
Would you like to learn more about document remediation? The following videos provide in-depth guidance.
- How to Tag a PDF Using Adobe Acrobat Pro DC 2025 - This video shows you three ways to tag a PDF (6 min)
- How to Make a Scanned PDF Accessible Using Adobe Acrobat Pro DC 2025 - This video explains how to convert a scanned article or book chapter into an accessible PDF (7 min)
Brown staff and faculty also have access to LinkedIn Learning content about how to make PDFs accessible:
And here are additional resources on creating accessible content:
- Creating Accessible Word Documents - Source: Explore Access
- Comprehensive Document Accessibility Guide - Source: WebAim
- Creating Accessible PowerPoint presentations - Source: WebAim
- Creating Accessible Content - Source: National Center on Disability and Access to Education