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Study plan
How to Pass the Certified Scrum Developer (CSD) Exam
A study plan for the Certified Scrum Developer (CSD) certification exam, built from the official domain weights instead of a generic template. Focus on the intersection of Scrum events and technical practices. Do not just memorize the Scrum Guide; understand how TDD and CI/CD facilitate the Definition of Done and the Sprint Goal.
- 7 domains
- 45 questions
- 90 min
- 70% to pass
Study in weight order, not topic order
The plan below follows the official blueprint weights, so the order of study is the order that returns the most points.
- 1
Agile Engineering Practices
20%- Test-Driven Development (TDD)
- Continuous Integration (CI)
- Pair Programming
- Refactoring
9 practice questions tagged to this domain.
- 2
Scrum Events
15%- Sprint Planning
- Daily Scrum
- Sprint Review
- Sprint Retrospective
7 practice questions tagged to this domain.
- 3
Scrum Framework
15%- Scrum Structure
- Accountabilities
- The Increment
7 practice questions tagged to this domain.
- 4
Technical Practices
15%- Automated Testing
- Code Quality
- DevOps principles
- Simple Design
7 practice questions tagged to this domain.
- 5
Scrum Theory & Values
15%- Empiricism
- Scrum Values
- Self-management
- Agile Manifesto
7 practice questions tagged to this domain.
- 6
Scrum Artifacts
10%- Product Backlog
- Sprint Backlog
- Definition of Done
4 practice questions tagged to this domain.
- 7
Scrum Roles & Responsibilities
10%- Developers
- Scrum Master interaction
- Product Owner collaboration
4 practice questions tagged to this domain.
Three phases, in order
Most failures are process failures, not knowledge failures.
Phase 1 — Learn the high-weight domains
Start where the points are. The first domains on this plan carry the most weight, so a gap there costs the most. Cover the objectives, then close each topic with practice questions you actually get wrong.
Phase 2 — Close the mid-weight domains
The middle of the blueprint is where most candidates plateau. These domains are worth less per topic than the first phase, but they add up fast, and they are the usual difference between a near miss and a clear pass.
Phase 3 — Timed full mocks
Stop reading new material at this point. Run full-length exams under the real time limit and the real format, and use the per-domain breakdown to find which domain is still costing you the pass.
Where we put the emphasis
Practical application of engineering excellence within the constraints and rhythms of the Scrum framework.
The order matters less than the loop. Every domain you finish should end with questions you got wrong, because the mistake is the only thing you actually needed to study. On the Certified Scrum Developer (CSD) that loop is worth 15% of the exam in the first block alone.
More about the Certified Scrum Developer (CSD) exam
Explore the rest of this page series: format, cost, difficulty, requirements and how to prepare.
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Frequently asked questions
Everything you need to know about the Certified Scrum Developer (CSD) exam.