An Investigation of Online Job Application Accessibility and Usability

Principal Investigator(s):  View help for Principal Investigator(s) William Reuschel, American Foundation of the Blind; Michele McDonnall, National Research & Training Center on Blindness & Low Vision

Version:  View help for Version V1

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Project Citation: 

Reuschel, William, and McDonnall, Michele. An Investigation of Online Job Application Accessibility and Usability. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2024-12-18. https://doi.org/10.3886/E213621V1

Project Description

Summary:  View help for Summary The purpose of this one-year study was to evaluate the accessibility and usability of job application websites of Fortune 500 companies for screen reader users. The use of online application sites is almost ubiquitous today, and inaccessible online applications are considered a major barrier to employment for people who are blind or have low vision. The most recent research on the accessibility of these sites is dated, and technology has changed substantially since then, so additional research in this area is needed.

Our sample consists of 30 companies from the Fortune 500 list across five industry sectors: (a) financial; (b) healthcare; (c) retail; (d) technology; and (e) hotels, restaurants, and leisure. Three experienced screen reader users tested the usability of all websites (for a total of 90 tests). Each tester used a different screen reader-web browser combination. An expert accessibility engineer monitored data collection, captured real-time feedback from the testers, and recorded the length of time taken to complete each application. The following research questions were investigated:
  1. What is the current state of accessibility and usability of online job-application sites of national companies?
  2. What are the most common accessibility and usability issues on companies’ online job-application sites?
  3. What is the user experience for blind or low vision (B/LV) screen reader users when applying for jobs through companies’ online applications?
Funding Sources:  View help for Funding Sources United States Department of Health and Human Services. Administration for Community Living. National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR) (90RTEM0007)

Scope of Project

Subject Terms:  View help for Subject Terms accessibility (for disabled); assistive devices; usability
Collection Date(s):  View help for Collection Date(s) 2/10/2021 – 4/2/2021
Universe:  View help for Universe Fortune 500 companies with at least 70,000 employees or having 100 or more open job postings that require applicants to apply through their online application site.

Methodology

Response Rate:  View help for Response Rate N/A
Sampling:  View help for Sampling Random
Collection Mode(s):  View help for Collection Mode(s) mixed mode
Scales:  View help for Scales N/A
Weights:  View help for Weights N/A
Unit(s) of Observation:  View help for Unit(s) of Observation Companies’ online job application systems
Geographic Unit:  View help for Geographic Unit N/A

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Published Versions

V1 [2024-12-18]

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