Free Accessibility Certifications to take this Summer

Six free, self‑paced accessibility courses - ranked by difficulty level so you know where to start!

Nowadays there are countless web accessibility courses and certifications out there in the wild west of the web. There are so many, it is hard to tell which ones are actually worth your time. “Or my money!”, you might now add. But no, be assured, your money is safe. Because all of these are for free! So, before you spent any money on expensive certifications, where you don’t know how legit or knowledgeable they truly are, try these first.

I took all of these courses myself, so I’d be able to tell you which ones to pick based on your level of web accessibility proficiency and learning goals. All are free, online, and self-paced. So ideal for studying over the summer! Hurray!

UNITAR Inclusive Learning Design

A very short training program, maybe two hours all in all. But the examples are not the usual go-to ones and the practice quizzes are written in a way that makes you pause and think. I also appreciated that this training puts intersectionality front and center.

In my professional network (and likely also yours, dear reader), we often mean specifically disability inclusion when we use the term “inclusion” but effectively it refers to all dimensions that can bar one from equal and meaningful participation and opportunity in society.

This one also addresses key concepts such as disaggregated data, gender perspectives, socio-economic influences and power-dynamics.

What will you learn?

• Mainstream gender, inclusivity and disability inclusion intro training design and delivery

• Apply the inclusivity lenses across the training cycle, from analysis to evaluation

• Integrate inclusive best practices into learning environments, materials and facilitation approaches

• Apply do-no-harm principles to avoid unintended negative consequences in training design and implementation

ITC ILO: Disability in the Workplace

A bit different from the others, but equally important in theme. This self-paced course by the International Labour Organization (ILO) focuses on building, implementing and evaluating a disability inclusion strategy for your workforce.

I would particularly recommend it as a starting point for professionals in HR, talent pipeline or company culture.

It includes a ten questions pre-knowledge assessment. Like the UNITAR course above, it is pretty short.

Accessible EU: Accessible Technology Design

Already in its 4th edition, the Accessible Technology Design course is open for enrollment until October 31st. I took the course when it first came out and really appreciated how well it was structured. It covers all the basics, and at the same time goes beyond the surface level, so it’s not boring to advanced practitioners. Plus, it’s Accessible EU, so you know it’s a trustworthy source!

The course consists of 7 modules:

1. Accessibility and Inclusive Design.

2. ICT Accessibility Laws and Standards.

3. Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).

4. Digital Accessibility Myths.

5. Avoiding Non-Inclusive Design Patterns.

6. Creating Inclusive Designs.

7. Cognitive Accessibility

Students will learn about the foundations of universal accessibility in digital environments and gain the knowledge to design for all from the start. They will also understand accessibility and inclusive design as essential goals, grasp the key principles of Universal Design, and distinguish between legal requirements and technical standards, including current European legislation.

The course also explores why a single, well-designed solution is better than multiple alternatives, and introduces the principles of cognitive accessibility and their crucial role in creating truly inclusive experiences.

The AccessibleEU Campus regularly opens new courses up, it’s worth bookmarking. The Advanced Accessible Technology Design (building on this one above) begins on 14 September.

HDM Stuttgart: Public Courses Accessible Teaching Practices

Laura, why is this random German university in your course recommendations? Because HDM Stuttgart knows ball! If you remember how excited I was to proctor a knowledge badge exam for IAAP DACH, you should know that the chapter members from HDM Stuttgart are coordinating the whole thing!

Besides the KB BFL prep course (which is only in German), two more courses are available for free in English:

• Introduction to Web Accessibility from a User Perspective: Really, really good one to combine with any other on this list! It centers the experience of people with disabilities and offers tools, solutions and practical exercises. The 4 Modules are divided into: Vision, Hearing, Cognition, and Motor.

  I want to highlight the video on: How a Blind Developer Uses Visual Studio

• Accessible Learning and Teaching: Structured into 2 weeks (with ~20 minutes per day), the course introduces you to WCAG and the gang, but zones in on Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and how web accessibility applies to teaching materials, especially documents and online platforms. UDL is different from WCAG, so I find that there’s a lot to be learned from it for content design.

DHS Section 508 Trusted Tester

At the beginning of the year, I got scared that the Trusted Tester might also fall victim to the great DEI purge. Since then the Trusted Tester has been a regular guest on this newsletter.

It is a free course that teaches you every step of accessibility conformance testing for ICT according to Section 508. While there’s a case to be made that “compliant” doesn’t automatically equate to “accessible”, it still covers a lot and is highly specific to software testing. POUR principles and WCAG are extensively covered, yet I wouldn’t recommend it for beginners.

It will test your patience, but if you persevere and complete it, you will have my respect! And a certification from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

If you are curious now, check out the series/study group we just concluded:

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My Roadmap Recommendations per Level

Now, where should you start? Depends on your career, but this is how I would rank them based on pre-existing knowledge level:

Easy Introductions for Beginners

• UNITAR (for educators, workshop planning, or mentoring)

• ILO (for disability strategy, HR and talent pipeline)

These are great as introductory courses for three simple reasons: They are well researched, they emphasize intersectionality, and they are short. There are so many web accessibility courses and certifications out there. It is hard to tell which ones are a good measure of knowledge and skill.

In my opinion, the real danger lies in underestimating how topics overlap and intertwine. Starting off with a good awareness of intersectionality gives you a stronger foundation.

Plus, as I said, these are short; maybe two hours each. They can fit easily into your work week or maybe even your lunch break if you are especially ambitious. At the beginning, accessibility, inclusion and everything related to it can seem overwhelming (because it is!). Having a clearly defined awareness training can put structure into your learning journey.

Beginners to Intermediate

• Accessible EU

• HDM Stuttgart (Introduction to Web Accessibility from a User Perspective + Accessible Learning and Teaching)

In my opinion, these two together offer a solid foundation across web accessibility basics, user needs, laws and regulations, web and content design, and disability etiquette. They can take you from beginner to a solid intermediate level of understanding. If you can read German and are able to add the KB BFL prep course on top for document tooling, even better!

Advanced Only

• DHS Trusted Tester

While yes, it also covers the basics, this one takes so much time and dedication that it is highly likely to demotivate beginners. It’s a fantastic resource and a certification that shows that you really know your stuff well. But it’s not as easy to do on the side like the others! I can report back based on the study group that professionals with 5+ years in web accessibility auditing found it frustrating to complete. So while it teaches you everything you will need to know to pass the test, this one is a real grind!