Adobe Acrobat DC: Tutorials and Accessibility Resources

Adobe Acrobat DC (Document Cloud) enables users to create, edit, and manage PDF documents. It also includes built‑in tools to help ensure PDFs meet Accessibility standards, including Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 and Section 508 requirements.

This article provides links to official Adobe tutorials and guidance for creating accessible PDF documents.

 

Common Adobe Acrobat DC Tasks

With Adobe Acrobat DC, users can:

  • Fill out and sign PDF forms
  • Export PDFs to Microsoft Office formats (Word, Excel, and PowerPoint)
  • Edit text and images within PDFs
  • Combine multiple files into a single PDF
  • Scan documents and convert them into searchable PDFs

 

Adobe Acrobat DC Tutorials (Official Adobe Resources)

Adobe offers step‑by‑step tutorials for both basic and advanced Acrobat DC features at Adobe’s Learn & Support.

These tutorials include guidance on editing PDFs, adding comments, sharing files, and converting document formats.

 

Creating Accessible PDFs in Adobe Acrobat DC

Adobe Acrobat DC includes dedicated tools to help create, review, and remediate accessible PDF documents.

Built‑In Accessibility Features

  • Accessibility Checker
    Identifies common accessibility issues such as missing tags, undefined document language, insufficient color contrast, and untagged images.
  • Make Accessible Tool
    Provides a guided workflow that:
    • Adds document tags
    • Sets the document language
    • Adds a document title
    • Checks reading order
    • Flags accessibility issues

Running an Accessibility Check

To run an accessibility check in Adobe Acrobat DC:

  1. Open the PDF in Adobe Acrobat DC
  2. Select Tools
  3. Choose Accessibility
  4. Select Accessibility Check
  5. Review the results and correct any flagged issues

Additional Adobe guidance is available at Create and Verify PDF Accessibility.

 

Best Practices for Accessible PDFs

When creating or editing PDFs, follow these best practices:

  • Use proper headings and document structure
  • Add alternative text to images
  • Ensure sufficient color contrast
  • Use real text rather than scanned images without OCR (Optical Character Recognition)
  • Define the correct reading order
  • Do not rely on color alone to convey meaning

Whenever possible, create accessible content before converting documents to PDF (for example, by using styles and headings in Microsoft Word).

 

Adobe Creative Cloud Installation

Faculty and staff can download and install Adobe Creative Cloud by using the following guide: Adobe Creative Cloud – Download and Install

 

Electronic Signature Information

  • Adobe Sign is not included with Adobe Creative Cloud
  • Use DocuSign for electronic signature requests

For more information, see: UTRGV eSign – DocuSign

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