Guide to Passing your PSM2

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Passing PSM 1 is not a prerequisite to PSM2, but is highly recommended.  The PSM1 requires you to know What does Scrum Say? As per the Scrum guide: https://scrumguides.org/index.html  

PSM2, on the other hand, requires you to apply that knowledge in real-world scenarios.
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Definition of ‘Ready’ for the exam

• Be able to recite the Scrum Guide.
• Read the Nexus guide thoroughly.
• Get your PSM1.
• Hands-on experience as a Scrum Master.  
• Plan study time.
• PREPARE. PREPARE. PREPARE.
• Go through all the Learning paths freely shared on Scrum.org.
• Extra reading – though not a pre-requisite, I’ve found the following books extremely helpful:
• Mastering Professional Scrum – Stephanie Ockerman.
• Scrum –  A Pocket guide – Gunther Verheyen.  
• Do the open assessments for each learning path on Scrum.org, and repeat and repeat until you score 100% at least 3 times in a row (the reason for this is that some of the questions change with each try, so make sure you have covered them all).
• If you want to, you can sign up for a Professional scrum master training course (see links on Scrum.Org) but this is also not a prerequisite.
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Tips for the exam

• Take the exam during a time you can have quiet, focused time.  You might think you will fly through 30 questions in 90 minutes, but most of the questions entail a lot of reading.
• Answer questions in a way that references back to the scrum guide and the correct application of the framework.
• Make sure you read the question correctly. Some ask for 2 answers

Important to note: If you want to move on towards an application to become a Professional Scrum Trainer, you need a passing score of 95% on PMS1 and 90% on PSM2.
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Planning to Pass

Getting time is challenging, yes, but not impossible.  I found it best to take out 2 hours early morning before the day gets busy.  But when you do it, it is entirely up to you. JUST DO IT! 🙂

• Put together a proper study plan.
• Whether you do it on Trello or Miro or go old school with a whiteboard or notebook, put a plan together and set aside time to go through the material.
• Tackle it as you would a new project.
• Product goal = Passing PSM2.
• Put together a product backlog with all the learning paths and books you need to work through.
• Break down those learning paths into smaller achievable tasks.
• Calculate the time you can set aside for focused study and assess how many of these learning tasks you can accomplish in a session.
• Plan your first sprint and set a sprint goal: Completing the Scrum Master learning path.
• Do a Retrospective of your first sprint: Did you pass the open assessment?  If not, where do you need to improve?
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Free study plan on Miro

I’ve put together a Backlog on Miro with all the learning paths and links you require. You are welcome to duplicate and use it to fit your needs.  

Access the link below, duplicate the board in order to edit and use it as a planning tool to pass PSM2.
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Your free study plan on Miro:

https://miro.com/app/board/uXjVPTIDF3M=/

The content in the backlog covers all the learning paths as you will find on Scrum.Org and is also listed below :

https://www.scrum.org/professional-scrum-master-ii-certification

• Scrum Guide
• Nexus Guide
• Professional Scrum Competencies
  
• Scrum Master Learning Path
• Product Owner Learning Path
• Agile Leader Learning Path
• Development Team Member Learning Path
• Scaled Professional Scrum
• Professional Scrum with Kanban
• Suggested Reading and blogs
• Other blogs: https://www.scrum.org/scrum-guide-2020
• Take all the open assessments (Scrum Master, Product Owner, Developer, Nexus, Scrum with Kanban, Agile Leader (Metrics))

The PSM2 is a highly recognised Scrum qualification that not only tests and develops you as a Scrum Master, but the learnings from preparing for this exam adds tremendous value to your teams and the organisations you practise in. It is not an easy exam and with a passing score of 85%, it requires you to not only have the scrum theory running through your veins but also have the necessary hands-on experience to know how to implement this in practice.  This is one of the reasons it is so highly sought after in the industry.