Get the extra confidence boost for the PSM I exam.

You’ve learned all that needs to be learned about the Scrum Framework but not quite ready to bet $150 on your exam attempt. If this feels familiar, then you’re in the right place.

You only get 60 Minutes to answer 80 Questions - First-time test-takers will be typically concerned about the number of questions, the time limit, and the minimum 85% passing score. To break it down, it means you will need to answer at least 68 out of 80 questions correctly within 60 minutes.

Question types - The exam is composed of 3 question types. Below is a breakdown of the approximate ratios:

• Multiple Choice : ~65% (~52 questions)

• Multiple Response : ~30% (~24 questions)

• True / False : ~5% (~4 questions)

(choose the best answer) and (choose the best # answers) - Not all questions will contain answers that are purely right or wrong, there will also be some cases where any answer can be valid however you can’t choose them all. Keep in mind that you are seeking the best answer(s) rather than the right answers.

Be aware that there can be questions where it might seem to elicit multiple answers but there really is only one that is correct. ie Multiple Response with only a single valid answer.

True / False - Focus on whether you believe the presented statement is true or not rather than thinking about whether an opposite statement is true or not. A True/False question is only asking about the presented statement, so don’t overanalyze by justifying your answer by seeking an opposite statement.

“Easy” questions - I consider anything that can be explicitly found in the Scrum Guide as an easy question. For example, time-boxes, which events are used for what purpose, what are the artifacts, etc. If you know and remember the specific contents of the Scrum Guide, you should have no problem answering these types of questions.

“Harder” and not so obvious questions - These answers typically cannot be found in the Scrum Guide but are implicit so will involve a bit deeper thinking. The Scrum Guide is written with the assumption that you understand the underlying concepts and foundation from which Scrum is built.

“Tricky” questions - If a question feels like a trap or ambiguous, reread the question and all answers carefully. Questions are not meant to trick you and there are no “trick questions”.

Remember, the exam assesses your knowledge and understanding of Scrum and only focuses on that. The grammar and vocabulary of the questions are important to correctly interpret the question and will make answering it much easier.

Separate your personal experience. There’s a good chance that your organization used Scrum incorrectly. Some questions will focus on common anti-patterns and bad habits when Scrum is done wrong. For example, there are no Sprint 0 or hardening Sprints in Scrum.

Randomized questions and answers - All questions are randomly pulled from a master question bank. Of all of the certifications, the PSM I has the largest master question bank which is approximately 200–300 questions in total. Each of the 80 questions will be randomly pulled from the master question bank and answers can be randomly ordered so no two exams will be exactly alike.

Questions are continuously refined, added, and removed throughout the year in order to improve the assessment. This also makes many practice questions found online quickly obsolete.