Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) Exam Guide

The Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) from Scrum Alliance is the most widely recognized Scrum certification. It validates your understanding of the Scrum framework and your ability to serve as a Scrum Master.

Exam Overview

Detail	Value
Provider	Scrum Alliance
Questions	50 (multiple choice)
Length	60 minutes
Passing Score	74% (37/50 correct)
Price	~$995 USD (includes 2-day training course)
Validity	2 years
Prerequisites	Required 2-day CSM training from a Scrum Alliance RE

Scrum Framework

The Three Pillars (Empirical Process Control)

1. Transparency — All aspects of the process visible to those responsible
2. Inspection — Frequently inspect artifacts and progress toward the Sprint Goal
3. Adaptation — Adjust the process if anything deviates outside acceptable limits

The Five Values

1. Commitment — Team commits to achieving Sprint Goals
2. Courage — Do the right thing, work on tough problems
3. Focus — Everyone focuses on the Sprint Goal and team work
4. Openness — Be transparent about work and challenges
5. Respect — Respect each other as capable individuals

Scrum Roles

Product Owner

• Responsible for maximizing product value
• Manages the Product Backlog
• Defines and prioritizes backlog items
• Ensures the team understands backlog items
• Single point of contact for stakeholders
• Not: The PO does not tell the team how to do their work

Scrum Master

• Servant leader for the Scrum Team
• Removes impediments
• Coaches the team in Scrum practices
• Facilitates Scrum events
• Shields the team from external interference
• Helps the Product Owner with backlog management techniques
• Not: The SM does not manage the team or assign tasks

Developers

• Self-organizing, cross-functional team
• Responsible for delivering a "Done" increment each Sprint
• Owns the Sprint Backlog
• 3–9 people typically
• No sub-teams (no "tester" or "architect" titles — everyone is a Developer)
• Not: Developers are not assigned work by the SM or PO

Scrum Events

Sprint

• Timeboxed to 1 month or less (2 weeks is common)
• Consistent duration throughout development
• Contains all other Scrum events
• Results in a "Done," usable, potentially releasable increment

Sprint Planning

• Timebox: 2 hours/week of Sprint (max 8 hours for monthly Sprint)
• Attendees: Entire Scrum Team
• Output: Sprint Goal, Sprint Backlog, selected Product Backlog items
• Topics:
  1. Why is this Sprint valuable? (Sprint Goal)
  2. What can be Done this Sprint?
  3. How will the chosen work get done?

Daily Scrum

• Timebox: 15 minutes
• When: Same time and place every day
• Who: Developers (SM and PO can attend but don't have to)
• Purpose: Inspect progress toward Sprint Goal, plan next 24 hours
• Format: What did I do yesterday? What will I do today? Any impediments?
• Note: It's the Developers' meeting — they own it

Sprint Review

• Timebox: 1 hour/week of Sprint (max 4 hours)
• When: End of Sprint
• Who: Scrum Team + stakeholders
• Purpose: Inspect the increment, adapt the Product Backlog
• What happens: Team demonstrates work, stakeholders give feedback, backlog may be reprioritized

Sprint Retrospective

• Timebox: 45 minutes/week of Sprint (max 3 hours)
• When: After Sprint Review, before next Sprint Planning
• Who: Scrum Team only
• Purpose: Plan improvements for the next Sprint
• Focus: People, relationships, process, tools

Scrum Artifacts

Product Backlog

• Ordered list of everything needed in the product
• Dynamic — constantly evolving
• Owner: Product Owner
• Items include: features, bugs, tech debt, knowledge acquisition
• DEEP: Detailed appropriately, Emergent, Estimated, Prioritized

Sprint Backlog

• Selected Product Backlog items + plan for delivering them
• Owned by Developers
• Updated throughout the Sprint as work is done
• Highly visible, real-time picture of Sprint work

Increment

• Sum of all completed Product Backlog items in a Sprint
• Must meet the Definition of Done (DoD)
• Must be usable and potentially releasable
• At Sprint Review, only items meeting DoD are presented

Definition of Done (DoD)

• Formal description of the state of an Increment when it meets quality standards
• Shared understanding of what "Done" means
• If an item doesn't meet DoD, it cannot be released or presented

Key Concepts

Velocity

• Amount of work a team completes in one Sprint
• Used for forecasting (not for performance measurement)
• Historical metric, not a target

User Stories

• Format: "As a [role], I want [goal] so that [reason]"
• INVEST — Independent, Negotiable, Valuable, Estimable, Small, Testable
• Acceptance criteria — Conditions of satisfaction

Estimation

• Story Points — Relative estimation (1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13)
• Planning Poker — Team estimation technique
• T-shirt sizes — XS, S, M, L, XL

Burndown Chart

• Shows remaining work vs time
• Sprint burndown — Sprint Backlog remaining
• Release burndown — Product Backlog remaining
• Ideal line vs actual line

Impediments

• Any blocker preventing the team from achieving the Sprint Goal
• SM's primary responsibility to remove or escalate

Common Scrum Mistake Examples

Mistake	Correction
Scrum Master assigns tasks	Team self-organizes
Product Owner makes technical decisions	PO focuses on value
Stakeholders interrupt Sprint	Feedback captured for next Sprint
Daily Scrum for status to SM	Daily Scrum is for Developers
Sprint Retrospective skipped	Essential for continuous improvement
Done means "coded but not tested"	Done = meets DoD (tested, documented, deployed)

Study Tips

1. Know the Scrum Guide — The CSM exam is based entirely on the Scrum Guide (free from scrumguides.org)
2. Understand servant leadership — Scrum Master serves the team, not manages it
3. Memorize timeboxes — Sprint Planning (2hr/wk), Daily Scrum (15min), Sprint Review (1hr/wk), Retro (45min/wk)
4. Know the differences between roles — PO (value), SM (process), Developers (work)
5. Understand the artifacts — Product Backlog (what), Sprint Backlog (how), Increment (done)

Practice Questions

Test your knowledge with our CSM practice questions — 50+ questions covering the Scrum framework.

Start Practice →

Career Impact

• Scrum Master — $85k–$130k
• Agile Coach — $110k–$160k
• Project Manager (Agile) — $95k–$140k
• Delivery Lead — $100k–$145k

Next: Advanced Certified ScrumMaster (A-CSM), Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO), or SAFe Agilist

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