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Accessibility

· 13 checks — Landmarks, headings, alt text, forms, and link quality rolled into one auditable list.
SCORE
60
GRADE
D
FIX
6
REVIEW
4
PASS
3
INFO
0
Checks
13
3 PASS 4 REVIEW 6 FIX
D
Heading Hierarchy
Action
25 headings, 3 skip(s)
FIX
25 headings, 3 skip(s)
Info::
Single H1 present
Warning::
Heading level skipped: H1 → H3 (missing H2)
Skipping heading levels breaks the document outline. Screen readers may interpret missing levels as structural errors.
Warning::
Heading level skipped: H2 → H4 (missing H3)
Skipping heading levels breaks the document outline. Screen readers may interpret missing levels as structural errors.
Warning::
Heading level skipped: H2 → H4 (missing H3)
Skipping heading levels breaks the document outline. Screen readers may interpret missing levels as structural errors.
Warning::
1 empty heading(s)
Empty headings appear in the document outline but provide no information.
  • H3 About MSU
  • H3 Admissions
  • H3 Academics
  • H3 Student Life
  • H3 Research and Economic Development
  • H3 Outreach and Engagement
  • H1 (empty)
  • H3 Visit skipped
  • H3 Connect
  • H3 Apply
  • H3 Undergraduate Admissions
  • H3 Graduate Admissions
  • H3 International Admissions
  • H2 More News News
  • H4 Bozeman ranked as nation’s best college town skipped
  • H4 MSU highlights campus sustainability efforts
  • H4 MSU named Tree Campus USA ahead of Arbor Day
  • H4 Museum to host National Space Day Celebration
  • H2 Events
  • H4 World Premiere of "Yellowstone Wild through Time” skipped
  • H2 Impact.
  • H2 Snapshot
  • H3 More Information
  • H3 Resources
  • H3 Follow Us

Skipping heading levels breaks the document outline. Screen readers may interpret missing levels as structural errors.

Why this matters

Skipping heading levels breaks the document outline — screen-reader users lose track of section nesting.

Learn more ▾

Screen reader users navigate by jumping between headings (H1 → H2 → H3). Skipping (H1 → H3) breaks the sense of hierarchy. Use sequential levels even if you don't like the default styling — restyle with CSS instead. WCAG 1.3.1 (Info and Relationships) treats this as an A failure.

Source: WCAG 2.1 SC 1.3.1 / W3C WAI

Skipping heading levels breaks the document outline. Screen readers may interpret missing levels as structural errors.

Why this matters

Skipping heading levels breaks the document outline — screen-reader users lose track of section nesting.

Learn more ▾

Screen reader users navigate by jumping between headings (H1 → H2 → H3). Skipping (H1 → H3) breaks the sense of hierarchy. Use sequential levels even if you don't like the default styling — restyle with CSS instead. WCAG 1.3.1 (Info and Relationships) treats this as an A failure.

Source: WCAG 2.1 SC 1.3.1 / W3C WAI

Skipping heading levels breaks the document outline. Screen readers may interpret missing levels as structural errors.

Why this matters

Skipping heading levels breaks the document outline — screen-reader users lose track of section nesting.

Learn more ▾

Screen reader users navigate by jumping between headings (H1 → H2 → H3). Skipping (H1 → H3) breaks the sense of hierarchy. Use sequential levels even if you don't like the default styling — restyle with CSS instead. WCAG 1.3.1 (Info and Relationships) treats this as an A failure.

Source: WCAG 2.1 SC 1.3.1 / W3C WAI

Empty headings appear in the document outline but provide no information.

Why this matters

Empty <hN> tags break the document outline — screen-reader users navigating by heading hit dead silence.

Source: WCAG 2.4.6

F
Favicon & Branding
Action
2 icon(s) detected
FIX
2 icon(s) detected
Info::
favicon.ico present at site root
Info::
HTML icon links detected
Info::
No apple-touch-icon detected
iOS devices use this when users add your site to their home screen. Add <link rel='apple-touch-icon' sizes='180x180' href='/apple-touch-icon.png'>.
✓ favicon.ico Present
✓ PNG Icons Present
✗ Apple Touch Missing
✗ SVG Favicon Missing
✗ Manifest Icons Missing
✗ Multiple Sizes Missing
D
Web Manifest
Action
Not found
FIX
Not found
Info::
No web manifest found
No manifest at standard paths (/manifest.json, /site.webmanifest). A manifest is optional but enables PWA features like home screen installation and standalone display.

No web manifest found.

D
Dark Mode Support
Action
Theme color only
FIX
Theme color only
Info::
Theme-color present but no dark variant
A theme-color is set but no dark-specific variant was found. The browser toolbar may not adapt for dark mode users.
Got: #333333
Info::
No dark mode signals detected
Consider adding CSS with @media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) and <meta name='color-scheme' content='light dark'>.
Info::
Detection limited to meta tags and inline styles
External CSS files may contain prefers-color-scheme rules not visible to this scan.
Dark ModePartial Dark Mode
color-scheme meta Not set ✗Dark theme-color Not set ✗CSS indicators Not detected ✗

Detection limited to meta tags and inline styles.

D
Print Stylesheet
Action
No print styles
FIX
No print styles
Info::
No print-specific styles detected
When users print this page, they get the screen layout including navigation and non-essential elements. Add @media print rules to hide navigation and optimize layout for paper.
Print Stylesheet No Print Styles
Print stylesheet Not found ✗Inline @media print Not detected ✗
F
Navigation UX
Action
1 navigation pattern(s)
FIX
1 navigation pattern(s)
Info::
Search functionality detected
Got: role-search
Breadcrumbs
Search role='search' landmark
Skip Link
Labeled Navigation
Back to Top
Hamburger Menu
Sticky Navigation Cannot reliably detect (CSS-based)
1 of 6 testable patterns navigation patterns detected. Limited navigation support. Consider adding breadcrumbs, search, and skip link.
B
Landmark Structure
4 landmarks
REVIEW
4 landmarks
Info::
<main> landmark present
Warning::
No <nav> landmark found
Warning::
Skip navigation link is missing (WCAG 2.4.1)
Add a skip link as the first focusable element so keyboard users can bypass repeated navigation.
Info::
Search landmark present
Page Structure — as a screen reader sees it
BANNER header SEARCH MAIN CONTENTINFO footer

Add a skip link as the first focusable element so keyboard users can bypass repeated navigation.

Why this matters

Without a skip-nav link, keyboard users tab through every nav item before reaching content — every page, every visit.

Learn more ▾

WCAG 2.4.1 (Bypass Blocks) requires a mechanism to skip past repeated content. The standard implementation is a 'Skip to main content' link that's the first focusable element, visually hidden until focused. Three lines of HTML + four of CSS.

Source: WCAG 2.1 SC 2.4.1

B
404 Error Page
HTTP 404, custom page
REVIEW
HTTP 404, custom page
Info::
Correct 404 status code returned
Got: HTTP 404
Info::
Custom styled 404 page
Info::
Navigation links present on 404 page
Info::
Search form present on 404 page
404 Page Quality ✓ Custom 404 Page
Status Code HTTP 404 ✓Page Title Page Not Found | Montana State University ✓Custom Styling ✓Navigation ✓Homepage Link ✗Search Form ✓
C
Color Contrast (Screenshot)
Action
20 text elements analyzed, 4 fail WCAG AA
REVIEW

Analyzes text contrast against the actual rendered page, including background images, gradients, and overlays that CSS-based tools cannot detect.

16 pass 4 fail WCAG AA
title Montana State University | Top Tier Rese…
1.00:1
#000000
on
#000000
needs 4.5:1 (normal text)
16px · top of page (header area)
a Students
1.00:1
#000000
on
#000000
needs 4.5:1 (normal text)
16px · top of page (header area)
a Faculty & Staff
2.02:1
#000000
on
#003F7F
needs 4.5:1 (normal text)
16px · top of page (header area)
a Parents
3.68:1
#000000
on
#3469A1
needs 4.5:1 (normal text)
16px · top of page (header area) · over background image/gradient

1 contrast failures on background images/gradients

These failures are invisible to CSS-based accessibility tools like Lighthouse. The text may be fine on a solid background, but fails when rendered over an image or gradient.

Show all checked elements (20)
ElementRatioRequiredFGBGResult
h2 News17.78:13.0:1
#000000
#ECECEC
Pass
h2 Events17.78:13.0:1
#000000
#ECECEC
Pass
h2 Impact.17.78:13.0:1
#000000
#ECECEC
Pass
h2 Snapshot17.78:13.0:1
#000000
#ECECEC
Pass
h3 About MSU21.00:13.0:1
#000000
#FFFFFF
Pass
h3 Admissions17.78:13.0:1
#000000
#ECECEC
Pass
h3 Academics17.78:13.0:1
#000000
#ECECEC
Pass
h3 Student Life17.78:13.0:1
#000000
#ECECEC
Pass
h3 Research and Economi…17.78:13.0:1
#000000
#ECECEC
Pass
h3 Outreach and Engagem…17.78:13.0:1
#000000
#ECECEC
Pass
h3 Visit17.78:13.0:1
#000000
#ECECEC
Pass
h3 Connect17.78:13.0:1
#000000
#ECECEC
Pass
h3 Apply17.78:13.0:1
#000000
#ECECEC
Pass
h3 More Information17.78:13.0:1
#000000
#ECECEC
Pass
h3 Resources17.78:13.0:1
#000000
#ECECEC
Pass
h3 Follow Us17.78:13.0:1
#000000
#ECECEC
Pass
title Montana State Univer…1.00:14.5:1
#000000
#000000
Fail
a Students1.00:14.5:1
#000000
#000000
Fail
a Faculty & Staff2.02:14.5:1
#000000
#003F7F
Fail
a Parents3.68:14.5:1
#000000
#3469A1
Fail

Methodology: The top 20 text elements by font size were checked. Background color was sampled from the desktop screenshot using a 5-point pattern. WCAG 2.1 AA requires 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text.

C
Lighthouse Accessibility Audits
Action
Score 73/100 — 8 failing, 19 passed
REVIEW
73

Accessibility

These checks highlight opportunities to improve the accessibility of your web app. Automatic detection can only detect a subset of issues and does not guarantee the accessibility of your web app, so manual testing is also encouraged.

ARIA

Focusable descendents within an `[aria-hidden="true"]` element prevent those interactive elements from being available to users of assistive technologies like screen readers. Learn how `aria-hidden` affects focusable elements.

Why this matters

Informational: a Permissions-Policy directive showing feature -> allowed origins.

Source: MDN Permissions-Policy

Failing Elements
Become a Bobcat! Learn more about applying for admission to Montana State.   Ex… ul.slick-initialized > div.slick-list > div.slick-track > li.item
Montana State University celebrates Earth Day on April 22. Read more about the … ul.slick-initialized > div.slick-list > div.slick-track > li.item
Become a Bobcat! Learn more about applying for admission to Montana State.   Ex… ul.slick-initialized > div.slick-list > div.slick-track > li.item
Montana State University celebrates Earth Day on April 22. Read more about the … ul.slick-initialized > div.slick-list > div.slick-track > li.item

These are opportunities to improve the usage of ARIA in your application which may enhance the experience for users of assistive technology, like a screen reader.

Contrast

Low-contrast text is difficult or impossible for many users to read. Learn how to provide sufficient color contrast.

Why this matters

Performance issues directly impact user engagement and conversion rates.

Failing Elements
Montana State honors Excellence in Service and Employee of the Year award winne… div.slick-list > div.slick-track > li.item > p.slide-caption
Explore div.slick-track > li.item > p.slide-caption > a
VISIT div#actionitem-visit > div.thumbnail > div.caption > h3
CONNECT div#actionitem-connect > div.thumbnail > div.caption > h3
APPLY div#actionitem-apply > div.thumbnail > div.caption > h3
APR 22 div.col-md-12 > div.media > div.dateblock > a.eventlink
APR div.media > div.dateblock > a.eventlink > span.month
APR 22 div.row > div.col-sm-4 > div.dateblock > a.eventlink
APR div.col-sm-4 > div.dateblock > a.eventlink > span.month
APR 22 div.row > div.col-sm-4 > div.dateblock > a.eventlink
APR div.col-sm-4 > div.dateblock > a.eventlink > span.month
APR 23 div.row > div.col-sm-4 > div.dateblock > a.eventlink
APR div.col-sm-4 > div.dateblock > a.eventlink > span.month
APR 23 div.row > div.col-sm-4 > div.dateblock > a.eventlink
APR div.col-sm-4 > div.dateblock > a.eventlink > span.month

Low-contrast text is difficult or impossible for many users to read. Link text that is discernible improves the experience for users with low vision. Learn how to make links distinguishable.

Why this matters

Performance issues directly impact user engagement and conversion rates.

Failing Elements
Explore div.slick-track > li.item > p.slide-caption > a

These are opportunities to improve the legibility of your content.

Navigation

Properly ordered headings that do not skip levels convey the semantic structure of the page, making it easier to navigate and understand when using assistive technologies. Learn more about heading order.

Why this matters

Performance issues directly impact user engagement and conversion rates.

Failing Elements
Bozeman ranked as nation’s best college town div.row > div.newsitem > div.media-body > h4.media-heading
World Premiere of "Yellowstone Wild through Time” div.col-md-12 > div.media > div.media-body > h4.media-heading

These are opportunities to improve keyboard navigation in your application.

Names and labels

Link text (and alternate text for images, when used as links) that is discernible, unique, and focusable improves the navigation experience for screen reader users. Learn how to make links accessible.

Why this matters

Performance issues directly impact user engagement and conversion rates.

Failing Elements
Montana State University in Bozeman div#stick > ul.siteheaderlinks > li#sitelogo > a.navbar-brand

Screen readers cannot translate non-text content. Adding alternate text to `<object>` elements helps screen readers convey meaning to users. Learn more about alt text for `object` elements.

Why this matters

Performance issues directly impact user engagement and conversion rates.

Failing Elements
Montana State University in Bozeman li#sitelogo > a.navbar-brand > span > object

These are opportunities to improve the semantics of the controls in your application. This may enhance the experience for users of assistive technology, like a screen reader.

Tables and lists

Screen readers have a specific way of announcing lists. Ensuring proper list structure aids screen reader output. Learn more about proper list structure.

Why this matters

Performance issues directly impact user engagement and conversion rates.

Failing Elements
Become a Bobcat! Learn more about applying for admission to Montana State.   Ex… div.row > div.col-sm-12 > div.image-carousel > ul.slick-initialized

Screen readers require list items (`<li>`) to be contained within a parent `<ul>`, `<ol>` or `<menu>` to be announced properly. Learn more about proper list structure.

Why this matters

Performance issues directly impact user engagement and conversion rates.

Failing Elements
Montana State honors Excellence in Service and Employee of the Year award winne… ul.slick-initialized > div.slick-list > div.slick-track > li.item

These are opportunities to improve the experience of reading tabular or list data using assistive technology, like a screen reader.

○Interactive controls are keyboard focusable
○Interactive elements indicate their purpose and state
○The page has a logical tab order
○Visual order on the page follows DOM order
○User focus is not accidentally trapped in a region
○The user's focus is directed to new content added to the page
○HTML5 landmark elements are used to improve navigation
○Offscreen content is hidden from assistive technology
○Custom controls have associated labels
○Custom controls have ARIA roles
●`[aria-*]` attributes match their roles
●`[aria-hidden="true"]` is not present on the document `<body>`
●`[role]`s have all required `[aria-*]` attributes
●`[role]` values are valid
●`[aria-*]` attributes have valid values
●`[aria-*]` attributes are valid and not misspelled
●Buttons have an accessible name
●Image elements have `[alt]` attributes
●`[user-scalable="no"]` is not used in the `<meta name="viewport">` element and the `[maximum-scale]` attribute is not less than 5.
●ARIA attributes are used as specified for the element's role
●Elements use only permitted ARIA attributes
●Document has a `<title>` element
●`<html>` element has a `[lang]` attribute
●`<html>` element has a valid value for its `[lang]` attribute
●No element has a `[tabindex]` value greater than 0
●Touch targets have sufficient size and spacing.
●Document has a main landmark.
●Deprecated ARIA roles were not used
●Identical links have the same purpose.
○`[accesskey]` values are unique
○`button`, `link`, and `menuitem` elements have accessible names
○Elements with `role="dialog"` or `role="alertdialog"` have accessible names.
○ARIA input fields have accessible names
○ARIA `meter` elements have accessible names
○ARIA `progressbar` elements have accessible names
○Elements with an ARIA `[role]` that require children to contain a specific `[role]` have all required children.
○`[role]`s are contained by their required parent element
○Elements with the `role=text` attribute do not have focusable descendents.
○ARIA toggle fields have accessible names
○ARIA `tooltip` elements have accessible names
○ARIA `treeitem` elements have accessible names
○The page contains a heading, skip link, or landmark region
○`<dl>`'s contain only properly-ordered `<dt>` and `<dd>` groups, `<script>`, `<template>` or `<div>` elements.
○Definition list items are wrapped in `<dl>` elements
○ARIA IDs are unique
○No form fields have multiple labels
○`<frame>` or `<iframe>` elements have a title
○`<html>` element has an `[xml:lang]` attribute with the same base language as the `[lang]` attribute.
○Input buttons have discernible text.
○`<input type="image">` elements have `[alt]` text
○Form elements have associated labels
○The document does not use `<meta http-equiv="refresh">`
○Select elements have associated label elements.
○Skip links are focusable.
○Cells in a `<table>` element that use the `[headers]` attribute refer to table cells within the same table.
○`<th>` elements and elements with `[role="columnheader"/"rowheader"]` have data cells they describe.
○`[lang]` attributes have a valid value
○`<video>` elements contain a `<track>` element with `[kind="captions"]`
○Tables have different content in the summary attribute and `<caption>`.
○All heading elements contain content.
○Uses ARIA roles only on compatible elements
○Image elements do not have `[alt]` attributes that are redundant text.
○Elements with visible text labels have matching accessible names.
○Tables use `<caption>` instead of cells with the `[colspan]` attribute to indicate a caption.
○`<td>` elements in a large `<table>` have one or more table headers.
A
Alt Text Quality
1 of 35 images have issues
PASS
1 of 35 images have issues
Warning::
1 image(s) with filename as alt text
Info::
1 image(s) with alt text over 125 characters
Info::
3 decorative image(s) correctly marked
Info::
30 image(s) with good alt text
35 images 30 good alt text 3 decorative 1 generic
IssueCount
filename1 image(s)
too long1 image(s)
A+
Form Accessibility
All 2 controls labeled
PASS
All 2 controls labeled
Info::
2 control(s) properly labeled
2 controls
2 labeled
0 placeholder only
0 unlabeled
ControlTypeLabelMethod
#srch-termsearchSearchfor/id
#srch-term2searchSearchfor/id
All checks on this page are automated. Results are estimates - run targeted manual reviews when the score affects a release decision.

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