Accessibility Topic: Links
Links send users to a new page on the web or to a digital document, like a PDF. Good hypertext links make content accessible by making it clear where each link goes.
What is an Accessible Link?
Good hypertext links provide context for the user – especially those who use screen readers, are neurodivergent, have mobility issues, or use voice control software.
People who use assistive devices can pull all links into a list or can tab through links on a page – without context, a list of links reading “Click here” or other non-descriptive text would not provide each link’s destination.
How to Write Link Text
Accessible link text is short, descriptive, understandable, and unique:
- Short: Just a few words, typically not a whole sentence
- Descriptive: Describes where it goes or what it does, so a user knows what will happen in advance
- Understandable: Text that is readable for humans, not a long URL string
- Unique: Different from other link text on the same page or document, unless it goes to the same place
Avoid phrases that are meaningless to the reader like “more,” “click here,” or “this article.” Using descriptive phrases also helps users decide if they trust the link to take them where they are expecting to go. You may need to rewrite a sentence for in-context links to make sense ("linked" text is red):
Current: The class is held in Roskens Hall on Dodge Campus and a map of the campus can be found here.
Revised: The class is held in Roskens Hall on Dodge Campus. View a map of Dodge Campus.
More examples
Learn more about applying to UNO.
The Office of Strategic Marketing and Communications provides guidance for social media best practices.
Download or view the syllabus for Undergraduate Academic Advising.
Once the pages are updated, you will need to publish the page.
Missing Link Text
Missing link text occurs when a hyperlink has no accompanying text—often appearing as just an image or button. For users who rely on screen readers, this makes it difficult or impossible to understand that the element is a link. To fix this, ensure that meaningful text is used for hyperlinks or provide descriptive alt text for linked images.
Examples include:
- Image of social media icon is on a page, but there is no link to that account
- Graphic of a button with no alt text describing it (i.e.: a magnifying glass icon, button shaped graphic with "Click Here" on it)
Cascade contributors/approvers will be receiving Siteimprove reports containing pages that have improper link text.
Updates must be completed by December 31, 2025.
A review of all pages on the unomaha.edu site will begin in January of 2026. Pages that have not been corrected may be removed from the website.
The UNO website must be in compliance on April 24, 2026.
Please email uno.web@nebraska.edu if you need assistance.
