The University of Chicago

Surveys & Forms

Surveys

When creating surveys, follow the accessibility guidelines for content creators and consult the following resources:

  • Qualtrics Survey Accessibility – Build accessible surveys using accessible question types and themes. Check for accessibility compliance using ExpertReview.
  • Qualtrics Simple Layout – Using the Simple Layout is a great place to start creating an accessible survey.

Forms

When creating web forms, follow the accessibility guidelines for content creators and developers. Specific accessibility considerations for this type of content include:

Label all fields

All form fields must have a meaningful label. In addition, to be fully accessible, labels must:

  • Be programmatically associated with their field.
  • Be visible at all times.
  • Be in close proximity to their field.

Provide clear instructions

To help users avoid making errors before they happen, it is important that clear instructions are provided to users. When writing instructions:

  • Clearly communicate a field’s limitations (i.e. required formatting, character limits, etc.).
  • Clearly identify required form fields.
  • Ensure all instructions are available to assistive technologies.

Perform effective validation

Handling errors is an important part of form accessibility. When validating a form, be sure to:

  • Communicate validation errors that prevent form submission.
  • Communicate a successful submission.
  • Display clear error messages in context and provide specific instructions on how to fix the error.
  • Style error messages differently from regular labels so they can be easily identified.
  • Ensure all error messages are visible and available to assistive technologies.

Resources