Accessibility statement

This website is run by the University of Cambridge. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website. For example, that means you should be able to:

change colours, contrast levels and fonts
zoom in up to 200% without the text spilling off the screen
navigate most of the website using just a keyboard
navigate most of the website using speech recognition software
listen to most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver)

We've also made the website text as simple as possible to understand.

Get advice from AbilityNet about making your device easier to use if you have a disability.

How accessible this website is

We know some parts of this website are not fully accessible. This includes:

keyboard navigation is not possible on all interactive elements
screen reader focus can sometimes become trapped
some icons do not have text alternatives

What to do if you can't access parts of this website

If you need information on this website in a different format email applicationhelp@ug.admin.cam.ac.uk.

We'll consider your request and get back to you in 5 working days.

Reporting accessibility problems with this website

We're always looking to improve the accessibility of this website. If you find any problems that are not listed on this page or think we're not meeting the accessibility requirements, email applicationhelp@ug.admin.cam.ac.uk.

Enforcement procedure

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is responsible for enforcing the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the 'accessibility regulations'). If you're not happy with how we respond to your complaint, contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service (EASS)

Technical information about this website's accessibility

The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018 (the 'accessibility regulations') do not apply to the University of Cambridge. However, the University of Cambridge is committed to making its websites and mobile applications accessible and in this regard to complying voluntarily with the accessibility regulations. This accessibility statement is published in that context.

This website is partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines version 2.1 AA standard, due to the non-compliances listed below.

Non-accessible content

The content listed below is non-accessible for the following reasons.

Keyboard navigation is not possible on all interactive elements on some browsers and devices. This means someone using only a keyboard may be unable to control some interactive elements. This fails WCAG 2.0 A criterion 2.1.1 (Keyboard).

We plan to fix this by September 2024.

Non-compliance with the accessibility regulations

We plan to fix the following defects by September 2024.

Status messages for text input fields with search functionality are unclear for some users of assistive technology. This means that the fields do not provide enough information for some applicants, for example screen reader users. This fails WCAG 2.1AA criterion 4.1.3 (Status messages).

Screen reader focus can sometimes become trapped. This means that people who use a keyboard may get stuck on part of a page, unable to navigate away from content or a component. This fails WCAG 2.0 A criterion 2.1.2 (No keyboard trap).

The focus may move to the main area of the screen when uploaded content is removed. This may particularly disadvantage keyboard users and make the page difficult to understand and interact with. This fails WCAG 2.0 A criterion 2.4.3 (Focus order).

The focus sometimes navigates to the same component multiple times. Keyboard users may think these components are multiple, separate controls, rather than single components. This fails WCAG 2.0 A criterion 2.4.3 (Focus order).

Character count information for some text areas is not clear to all types of assistive technology. This may make it difficult to understand how many more characters can be added. This fails WCAG 2.1 AA criterion 4.1.3 (Status messages) and WCAG 2.0 A criterion 1.3.1 (Info and relationships).

Validation or error messages are not always clear to all types of assistive technology. This means some users may not understand what has caused an error until they return to the question or go to a review screen. This fails WCAG 2.0 A criterion 1.3.1 (Info and Relationships). It also fails WCAG 2.0 A criterion 3.3.1 (Error identification).

Question guidance is not always associated with the relevant form field. This means that the purpose of the form fields may be unclear to some users. This fails WCAG 2.0 A criterion 1.3.1 (Info and relationships).

Icons for uploading files have poor colour contrast. This means that sight-impaired users may not be able to see some important icons and understand their purpose. This fails WCAG 2.1 AA criterion 1.4.11 (Non-text contrast).

Some icons do not have text alternatives. This means the information conveyed by the icons is not available to some applicants, such as screen reader users. This fails WCAG 2.0 A criterion 1.1.1 (Non-text content).

Tables for uploading files do not have headers in all of the columns. This means that users may not understand the purpose of some columns. This fails WCAG 2.0 A criterion 1.3.1 (Info and relationships).

Some questions asking applicants to select one option as a radio button may not be clear to users of assistive technology. This means that the purpose of the form fields may be unclear to some users. This fails WCAG 2.0 A criterion 1.3.1 (Info and relationships).

Some headings may not be clear to all types of assistive technology. This means that some users may not understand the structure of the content. This fails WCAG 2.0 A criterion 1.3.1 (Info and relationships).

Text input fields do not autofill. This means that applicants with language and memory problems or disabilities, and those with motor impairments, will not benefit from the browser automatically filling their information for them. This fails WCAG 2.1 AA criterion 1.3.5 (Identify input purpose).

The applicant dropdown menu description may be unclear to all types of assistive technology. This means that screen reader users may not understand the purpose of every component in the menu. This fails WCAG 2.0 A criterion 2.4.3 (Focus Order). It also fails WCAG 2.0 A criterion 4.1.2 (Name, role, value).

Keyboard navigation is not possible on all interactive elements on some browsers and devices. This means someone using only a keyboard may be unable to control some interactive elements. This fails WCAG 2.0 A criterion 2.1.1 (Keyboard).

Disproportionate burden

It is not considered that any aspect of My Cambridge Application will fall into this category. Areas of non-compliance with the guidelines are detailed in other sections of this statement.

Content that's not within the scope of the accessibility regulations

Not applicable.

How we tested this website

This website has been tested between 1 January and 1 March 2023. Tests were carried out by an independent internal audit team using a purpose-built test suite. The independent organisation AbilityNet carried out technical accessibility tests on this website in May 2023.

We tested our main website platform, available at https://apply.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/.

What we're doing to improve accessibility

If we add or change any page, we'll retest it and update this statement.

This statement was prepared on 30 June 2023.