Scrum courses for agile professionals

The right Scrum course depends on your role, your experience with Scrum, and what you want to achieve.

• Scrum Essentials – choose this if you are new to Scrum and want a practical, flexible introduction before committing to a role-specific route. The course is self-paced, takes around 10 hours, and leads to the APMG Scrum Essentials qualification. It suits developers, testers, business analysts, and project managers who need a solid working knowledge of Scrum without specialising in one role yet.
• Scrum Master – choose this if you will be facilitating Scrum events, removing blockers, and supporting a team’s delivery and continuous improvement. The two-day instructor-led course leads to a Professional Scrum Master, Certified Scrum Master, or APMG Scrum Master qualification. It suits aspiring Scrum Masters, delivery leads, and project managers working with Scrum Teams.
• Scrum Product Owner – choose this if you are responsible for prioritising work, managing the product backlog, and maximising value. The two-day instructor-led course leads to a Professional Scrum Product Owner, Certified Scrum Product Owner, or APMG Scrum Product Owner qualification. It suits product managers, business analysts, and anyone defining and ordering work in a Scrum Team.

All three courses have no prerequisites and include the relevant exam. If you are genuinely unsure which role fits you, Scrum Essentials is a low-risk starting point before progressing to a role route.

No prior Scrum Master certification or training is required before taking a Scrum Product Owner course at Knowledge Train.

Both the Scrum Master and Scrum Product Owner courses are entirely independent of one another. Neither has any prerequisites, so you can enrol on the Scrum Product Owner course directly, regardless of whether you have any prior Scrum experience or qualifications.

The two courses are designed for different roles within a Scrum Team:

• Scrum Master – best suited to people who want to support Scrum Teams, facilitate Scrum events, and help improve how delivery happens.
• Scrum Product Owner – best suited to people responsible for prioritising work and maximising value, typically in product management, business analysis, or business-facing roles.

If you are entirely new to Scrum and want a grounding in the fundamentals before committing to a role-specific route, the Scrum Essentials course is a practical starting point. It is a self-paced, 10-hour online course with no prerequisites, and it leads to the APMG Scrum Essentials qualification.

If you are already clear on your role, you can go straight to the Scrum Product Owner course, which runs over two days and leads to either the Professional Scrum Product Owner or Certified Scrum Product Owner qualification.

Scrum.org, Scrum Alliance, and APMG are three separate certification bodies, each offering their own Scrum qualifications with different credentials, assessment approaches, and industry recognition.

• Scrum.org issues the Professional Scrum Master (PSM) and Professional Scrum Product Owner (PSPO) certifications. These are assessment-focused qualifications aligned closely to the Scrum Guide. There is no mandatory training requirement – the exam can be taken independently – though attending a course builds exam confidence and practical understanding.
• Scrum Alliance issues the Certified Scrum Master (CSM) and Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO) certifications. These are widely recognised credentials that require attendance on a structured, trainer-led course as part of the certification process.
• APMG International offers the APMG Scrum Master, APMG Scrum Product Owner, and APMG Scrum Essentials certifications. APMG is an established UK-based accreditation body that also accredits well-known qualifications such as PRINCE2 and AgilePM.

In practice, all three bodies produce credible, recognised Scrum qualifications. The right choice often depends on your employer’s preferences, the sector you work in, or the certification route your training provider offers. Knowledge Train delivers courses leading to qualifications from all three bodies across the Scrum Master and Scrum Product Owner routes.

The validity period and renewal requirements for Scrum certificates depend on the specific certification body and route you choose, and this information has not been supplied for the certifications available through Knowledge Train’s Scrum courses.

Knowledge Train offers Scrum qualifications across three main routes:

• Scrum Master – leading to the Professional Scrum Master, Certified Scrum Master, or APMG Scrum Master qualification
• Scrum Product Owner – leading to the Professional Scrum Product Owner, Certified Scrum Product Owner, or APMG Scrum Product Owner qualification
• Scrum Essentials – leading to the APMG Scrum Essentials qualification

Each of these qualifications is awarded by a different certification body, and renewal policies – including whether a certificate expires, requires continuing education units, or needs a renewal exam – vary between those bodies. It is worth checking directly with the relevant certification body for the route you are considering before you enrol.

If you are unsure which Scrum certification route is right for you or have questions about what is included in a specific course, Knowledge Train offers tutor support by email and can help clarify what each route involves.

The duration varies by course: the Scrum Master and Scrum Product Owner courses each run over 2 days of instructor-led training, while the Scrum Essentials course is a self-paced online programme requiring approximately 10 hours of study.

Here is a quick comparison of the three courses available through Knowledge Train:

• Scrum Master course – 2 days, instructor-led online. Suitable for aspiring or practising Scrum Masters, project managers, and delivery leads. Includes a multiple-choice exam and leads to a recognised Scrum Master certification.
• Scrum Product Owner course – 2 days, instructor-led online. Designed for Product Owners, product managers, and business analysts working in Scrum Teams. Includes a multiple-choice exam and leads to a recognised Product Owner certification.
• Scrum Essentials course – approximately 10 hours, self-paced online with 12 months of access. Ideal for those new to Scrum who want a practical introduction before committing to a role-specific route. Includes the APMG Scrum Essentials exam (50 questions, 40 minutes, 60% pass mark).

Neither the Scrum Master nor the Scrum Product Owner courses have prerequisites, and neither does Scrum Essentials, so all three courses are accessible without prior Scrum knowledge. If you are completely new to Scrum, Scrum Essentials is a useful starting point before progressing to a role-specific route.

Scrum and AgilePM are both agile frameworks, but they serve different purposes and suit different types of work.

Scrum is a lightweight framework for delivering complex work iteratively, using short cycles called Sprints. It defines three roles – the Scrum Master, the Product Owner, and Developers – along with a small set of events and artefacts. Scrum is particularly common in software development and product delivery, though it is used across many sectors. Scrum courses, such as those available from Knowledge Train, focus on applying this framework in practice and lead to qualifications such as the Professional Scrum Master or Certified Scrum Product Owner.

AgilePM (Agile Project Management) is a more structured, governance-focused method developed by DSDM (Dynamic Systems Development Method). It provides a broader project management framework, including defined roles, phases, and controls that sit alongside agile delivery techniques. AgilePM tends to be used in environments where formal project governance, contracts, or organisational oversight are important.

Key differences at a glance:

• Scope: Scrum focuses on team-level delivery; AgilePM covers the broader project and governance layer.
• Structure: Scrum is deliberately minimal; AgilePM includes more process and documentation guidance.
• Common use: Scrum suits product and delivery teams; AgilePM suits project managers in regulated or contract-driven environments.
• Compatibility: The two frameworks can be used together – Scrum for team delivery, AgilePM for wider project management.

Yes – the Scrum Product Owner course offers genuinely distinct skills from the Scrum Master course, and holding both qualifications is increasingly valued by employers working in agile delivery.

The two certifications cover different accountabilities within a Scrum Team. A Scrum Master certification focuses on facilitating Scrum events, removing impediments, and coaching teams to improve. A Scrum Product Owner certification focuses on maximising value – through backlog management, prioritisation, stakeholder alignment, and communicating product goals. These are complementary rather than overlapping skill sets.

The Scrum Product Owner course is particularly worth considering if you:

• Work closely with Product Owners and want a deeper understanding of their decision-making
• Are moving into a product management or business-facing delivery role
• Want to broaden your agile credentials to cover both team facilitation and value-focused delivery
• Are a project manager or delivery lead who bridges team and stakeholder responsibilities

Both courses run over 2 days with no prerequisites, and each includes a multiple choice exam leading to a recognised qualification such as the Professional Scrum Product Owner or Certified Scrum Product Owner. Holding qualifications in both roles can strengthen your profile significantly, particularly if you work across multiple Scrum Teams or move between delivery and product responsibilities.