If I were to compare the PMP (Project Management Professional) and PSMI (Professional Scrum Master I) exams, I would say it's like comparing a marathon to an 800m run.
Why?
First of all – time.
PMP is 4 hours of intense work at a good pace, PSMI is almost a sprint. In PMP we have 4 hours to solve two hundred questions, in PSMI there are only 80 questions, but we have to complete them in 60 minutes. At PMP you can have good and bad moments, you can lose time, but also make up for it, you can even go out for a few minutes to get some fresh air, stretch your bones, drink a high-vitamin juice and snack on a protein bar. There is no such luxury in PSMI, it is a fight against time from start to finish.
Secondly – scope.
PMP is not only about the need to master the knowledge contained in PMBOK, although this in itself is quite a challenge. It is primarily the ability to put yourself in the role of a PM in a specific situation and solve it in accordance with the rules of art. These are a lot of situational questions and the need to know where and when we are in the project.
PSMI is mainly knowledge questions, so theoretically the matter seems much easier, especially since the Scrum-Guide is only 17 pages. However, you have to know it practically by heart and shoot the answers without thinking.
Third – questions.
PMP is always only one correct answer, so you don't need to read the rest if you are quite sure. In PSMI, there may be one correct answer, but there may also be two, three, four…
Fourth – preparation.
I considered the tedious preparation for the PMP exam to be over when I regularly achieved scores of 98-100% on practice tests. PSMI - this is where I decided I was ready when I obtained 100%, and answering 80 questions took me no more than 30 minutes.
I wish you good luck on both paths.
Arkadiusz Urbański, PMP, PSMI
Important links:
https://www.pmi.org/certifications/types/project-management-pmp
https://www.scrum.org/professional-scrum-certifications/professional-scrum-master-assessments
