CV Accessibility Guide

Introduction

In compliance with updates to ADA regulations, all digital content must be updated to meet recognized accessibility standards by April 24th, 2027. All documents available on the School of Nursing website, including Curricula Vitae (CVs) in the Faculty Directory, must meet these requirements. This guide will help you determine whether your CV meets accessibility requirements and remediate any accessibility issues. 

Summary

  • CVs must meet document digital accessibility requirements as outlined in the U-M digital accessibility guidelines. 
  • Microsoft Word (.docx) format is recommended as it is the most accessible option. If there are concerns about protecting the document, Word provides options to restrict editing and publish CVs as protected files.
  • Word’s built-in accessibility checker can help you identify and remediate accessibility issues in your existing CV.
    •  Some accessibility issues aren’t technical in nature and won’t be found by the tool. Ensure your document meets the applicable requirements outlined in the document accessibility checklist.
  • Alternatively, you can move your CV into the already accessible template.

Recommended Format

    CVs should be published in a .docx (Word) format. Word documents offer more accessibility features and work better with assistive technologies like screen readers than do PDFs. However, Word documents must also meet accessibility standards. 

Checking Your CV’s Accessibility

  1. Start with a Word (.docx) document. 
    1. If you only have your CV in PDF format, convert it to a Word document. 
      1. Open your CV in Adobe Acrobat
      2. Click “Convert” on the toolbar
      3. Choose “Microsoft Word” in the “Export PDF To” menu
      4. Click “Convert to DOCX”
    2. If you only have your CV in Google Docs, save it as a Word document. 
      1. Open your CV in Google Docs
      2. Click “File” in the toolbar and choose “Download.”
      3. From the dropdown menu, choose “Microsoft Word.”
  2. Once your document is open in Microsoft Word, run the built-in accessibility check. 
    1. Click “Review” in the ribbon 
    2. Click “Check Accessibility”

Word’s built-in accessibility checker will find most technical accessibility issues. However, it’s good practice to review your document manually too. Some accessibility issues, like proper use of tables and heading structure, aren’t technical in nature and could pass the accessibility checks. 

Remediating Your CV

After running Word’s accessibility checker, it’s time to resolve any issues it finds. There are two recommended ways to make your CV accessible: remediate issues in your existing CV, or transition to using an accessible template. Which is the right option depends on how difficult remediating your current file would be. 

Option 1: Remediate your existing CV

  • Microsoft Word’s Accessibility Assistant pane can help you fix most of the common accessibility issues. This pane is brought up after running the accessibility check tool detailed in the first section of this document. 

  • Double check your document for non-technical accessibility requirements. Since these aren’t technical, Word’s accessibility checker can’t always identify them. 

    • Fonts: Sans-serif fonts like Arial and Calibri are more readable. Size 12 or higher is recommended. 
    • Links: Links should have meaningful text that describes where the reader will be taken.
    • Heading Structure: Ensure headings are laid out in the correct reading order, with larger headings indicating section titles and smaller headings indicating subsections. 
      • For an easy look at how your headings are laid out, turn on the Navigation Pane by clicking on “View” in the ribbon, then checking “Navigation Pane.” 
    • Tables: Avoid using tables to layout content. Many CV templates organize content in table format. Unfortunately, this is not accessible. Tables don’t work as well with screen readers or magnification. 
      • Content should be laid out with spaces, tabs, lists, and paragraphs. 
      • Click through the sections in your CV to see if it’s using tables. When a table is selected, a small crossed arrows icon will appear to the left of the table, and “Table Design” and “Table Layout” will appear on the ribbon. 

Option 2: Transition your CV to an accessible template

  • Use the UMSN CV Template for an easy transition.
    • This template is already accessible.
  • This requires copying over the information from your current CV. This can take time, but is simpler than remediating complex issues in an existing file. 
  • Save the Google Document as a Word (.docx) file, then transfer your content over. 
  • Alternatively, reach out to UMSN Faculty Support for help transitioning your CV to a template. 

Make Your CV Read Only and Prevent Editing

    The final step is to save your accessible CV as a protected Word document. This is an optional step that prevents anyone who downloads it from editing it. Follow these instructions on your Word document:

  1. Click “Review” then “Restrict Editing.”
  2. Under “Editing restrictions”, check “Allow only this type of editing in the document”, and make sure the list says “No changes (Read only).”
  3. Click “Yes, Start Enforcing Protection.”
  4. Set a password (optional). This will prevent users from disabling the protections and a password will be required to enable editing.
    1. Password protection in Word mainly serves as a simple barrier to prevent casual editing. It prevents others from editing your CV after downloading the file. It doesn’t encrypt the document and can complicate future editing for you as well. 
      1. Ensure you’ll remember the password to edit your CV in the future. 
      2. Alternatively, save a version of your document without protection on your computer and provide a protected copy for the UMSN website. 

Once your CV is uploaded to the Faculty directory, it cannot be altered by others on the website, regardless of password protection. The steps provided are only meant to prevent users from editing the document after they download and save it to their own device.

Additional Resources

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