Making exams accessible

Ensuring Equitable Assessment at WSU Vancouver

At WSU Vancouver, providing equal access to educational materials is a core priority. When designing assessments, it is essential to ensure that exams are compatible with assistive technologies, such as JAWS and other screen readers. Accessible formatting allows every student to demonstrate their knowledge without barriers, regardless of how they interact with digital content.

To maintain these standards, exams must be provided in accessible formats. Student Accommodations and Disability Resources staff are available to convert PDFs or inaccessible documents if they are submitted at least one week before the scheduled exam. Alternatively, faculty may create and submit their own accessible exams up to 48 hours in advance. For an exam to be considered accessible, all text must be machine-readable, and every visual element, including images, charts, and formulas must include a descriptive text alternative.

Some students use screen reader devices (such as JAWS) when taking exams. To make sure exams are accessible for these students, the exams may need to be converted from PDFs or inaccessible Word documents to accessible Word documents. Student Accommodations & Disability Resources staff can convert them, as long as they are received at least one week before the scheduled exam. Alternately, you may create accessible exams on your own, and submit the test 48 hours before the exam. When creating an accessible exam, keep in mind that questions must be readable to a screen reader, and graphics or images may need to be described. Please see the examples below. If you have questions or are unsure whether an exam is accessible, please contact Student Accommodations & Disability Resources staff.