PSM I Study Guide: Scrum Guide Topics and Practice-Test Plan
A PSM I preparation plan focused on applying Scrum accountabilities, events, artifacts, commitments, and empiricism under exam conditions.
What is the PSM I assessment?
The Professional Scrum Master I (PSM I) assessment tests whether you understand Scrum as defined in the Scrum Guide and can apply its principles in straightforward situations. It is not primarily a vocabulary quiz. Many questions distinguish between a response that sounds helpful and one that preserves empiricism, self-management, accountability, and the purpose of a Scrum event or artifact.
Scrum.org currently lists 80 questions in 60 minutes, with multiple-choice, multiple-answer, and true-or-false formats. The passing score is 85%, and each attempt costs US$200. Scrum.org also identifies the free Scrum Open assessment as a preparation resource. Always check the official assessment page before purchasing because delivery details can change.
What should a PSM I study guide cover?
Scrum.org groups PSM I preparation into three broad competency areas.
Understanding and applying the Scrum framework
Know empiricism, the Scrum values, the Scrum Team, events, artifacts, and the Definition of Done. Study these as a connected system. For example, the Sprint Goal supports focus and flexibility during a Sprint; the Increment creates transparency about usable value; and the Definition of Done supplies a shared quality commitment.
Be precise about the three accountabilities: Product Owner, Scrum Master, and Developers. The 2020 Scrum Guide uses accountabilities, not job-title roles. Understand who is accountable for maximizing product value, creating a valuable and usable Increment, and establishing Scrum as defined in the guide.
Developing people and teams
Review self-management, facilitation, and coaching. A Scrum Master does not assign daily tasks or become the team's project coordinator. PSM I scenarios often reward enabling the Scrum Team to inspect, adapt, resolve impediments, and improve its own effectiveness.
Managing products with agility
Study Product Goal, Product Backlog management, value, forecasting, release planning, stakeholders, and customers. Scrum does not prescribe a fixed release schedule or a specific estimation technique. Separate what Scrum requires from complementary practices a team may choose.
Build a four-week PSM I study plan
Week 1: read for structure
Read the current Scrum Guide once without notes, then again with a one-page map. Connect each event to its purpose, participants, timebox, and related commitment. Map the artifacts to Product Goal, Sprint Goal, and Definition of Done.
At the end of the week, explain the complete framework aloud without looking at the guide. Any point you cannot explain simply belongs on your correction list.
Week 2: test rules against common myths
Write short answers to questions such as:
- Who can cancel a Sprint, and under what condition?
- Is the Daily Scrum a status meeting for the Scrum Master?
- Can work be released before the Sprint ends?
- Who decides how Developers turn Product Backlog items into an Increment?
- What happens when work does not meet the Definition of Done?
Check each answer against the Scrum Guide or Scrum.org learning resources. This step prevents workplace habits from replacing the actual framework.
Week 3: apply Scrum to situations
Work through scenarios involving an absent stakeholder, an unclear Product Goal, carry-over work, quality pressure, an ineffective Daily Scrum, or a manager assigning work directly. Ask which Scrum purpose is being weakened and what a Scrum Master should enable next.
Avoid memorising a universal intervention. Coaching, teaching, facilitating, removing an organizational impediment, or allowing the team to learn may each be appropriate in a different context.
Week 4: practise under time pressure
Use the official Scrum Open assessment as a baseline, then take a separate 80-question timed simulation. Sixty minutes provides an average of 45 seconds per item, so mark uncertain questions and avoid spending several minutes on one wording dispute.
Review every incorrect and guessed answer. Cite the relevant Scrum Guide passage, explain why the distractors fail, and retest the idea in a differently worded scenario.
A better PSM I practice-test method
Classify errors rather than recording only a score:
- Framework error: an event, artifact, commitment, or accountability was misunderstood.
- Empiricism error: the answer reduced transparency, inspection, or adaptation.
- Self-management error: authority was incorrectly transferred to a manager or Scrum Master.
- Product error: the Product Goal, value, stakeholder learning, or Product Backlog was mishandled.
- Reading error: words such as must, may, best, or first were missed.
This turns a PSM I mock exam into a correction tool instead of a question-recognition exercise. A repeated high score on familiar questions is weaker evidence than being able to justify unfamiliar scenarios from Scrum principles.
Common PSM I preparation mistakes
- Studying an older summary instead of the current Scrum Guide.
- Treating every practice used by an agile team as a Scrum requirement.
- Assuming the Scrum Master owns delivery, assigns work, or runs every event.
- Memorising event timeboxes without understanding their purpose.
- Ignoring Product Goal, Sprint Goal, and Definition of Done commitments.
- Using the Scrum Open answer pattern as the only readiness measure.
Training can be valuable, but preparation should still include careful reading, application, and timed review. Practical experience also helps only when you can separate local conventions from Scrum itself.
Use the CertGuru PSM I mock exam after you have mapped the framework. The practice test versus mock exam guide explains when to use short drills and full simulations, while the 30-day certification study plan can help if you need a longer schedule.
CertGuru is independent and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Scrum.org.
Authoritative references
- Scrum.org Professional Scrum Master I certification
- Scrum.org suggested reading for PSM I
- The Scrum Guide
Confirm the current assessment format, price, policies, and preparation guidance directly with Scrum.org before buying an attempt.