The accessibility requirements cover a wide range of content on online services and apply to the files on the services, including the PDF/A files of dissertations in LUTPub publication repository. They aim to ensure that online content can be accessed by all people, even those with disabilities or assistive technology.
Assistive technology is needed and used by people who have difficulty using information technology, for example because of sensory impairment, illness or cognitive difficulties. Assistive technologies are devices and software that help people to manage and use different terminal devices as well as convey information about content. One example of assistive technology are screen readers. In addition to visible content, screen readers also provide the user with code annotations and information about structures, such as header levels or alternative texts for images.
Accessibility promotes equality. In Finland, accessibility is also required by the Act on the Provision of Digital Services (available in Finnish and Swedish only). Certain public digital documents produced by doctoral students are also covered by the law. These include in particular dissertations and their abstracts which are saved in the LUTPub publication repository.
It is the responsibility of the doctoral student to ensure the accessibility of their dissertation. Please take accessibility into account from the very beginning of the writing process, not just before starting the printing process.
An accessible Word-document should contain at least the following:
Please find below instructions on how to perform an accessibility check on a Word-document.
Perform an accessibility check on your dissertation (to the summary section in article-based dissertations). Use the built-in accessibility checking function in Word. The file must be saved in .docx format.
1. Open the dissertation file in Word.
2. Open the Review tab.
3. Select Check Accessibility.
4. This opens the Accessibility Assistant -window on the right side of the Word document. The inspection results show possible errors and warnings.
5. Go through the errors and correct them.
Check also the properties of the dissertation file, because this data will appear in the properties of the PDF file. In the LaTeX file check/update the metadata. The Word file must be given a title in the file properties. Note that the title of the document is not the same as the file name. Add the title as follows:
1. Open the File menu and select Info.
2. On the right side you'll see Properties. Click on the Title field and type Dissertation Your name.
To make a PDF document accessible, you must first make the original Word document accessible and then convert it into PDF format using the appropriate procedure.
Send the finalized manuscript of the dissertation in PDF format to the LUT University Press no later than 23 calendar days before the public examination.
More information about accessibility:
Accessibility library on the Celia Guidelines website (only in Finnish & Swedish)
Finlex: Act on the Provision of Digital Services (306/2019) (only in Finnish & Swedish)
More information on how to create accessible documents are available e.g. in Michigan State University's site (link opens in a new browser window).