Scrum Without Technical Discipline Is Just Meetings.
Two days in the code, not in slides. You’ll practise the engineering habits that let a team finish something every sprint without leaving a mess for someone else to clean up — and you’ll leave with the Scrum Alliance CSD.
Completing this class earns you the Scrum Alliance® Certified Scrum Developer® (CSD).
Sprints Don’t Fail in the Standup. They Fail in the Code.
A team can run every event correctly and still miss every sprint. The reason usually isn’t the process. It’s that the code fights back:
- Changes that can’t be made safely, so eventually nobody makes them
- A definition of done that quietly stops at “it works on my machine”
- Integration left until the end, where it becomes somebody’s weekend
- Tests written afterwards, if at all, and trusted by no one
- Design decisions deferred so long they harden into constraints
The Certified Scrum Developer course is where you fix that — by working in code for two days, not by reading about it.
Upcoming cohorts
No dates on the calendar right now.
What you'll learn
- Turning a product backlog item into a working increment, every sprint
- Test-Driven Development, practised until it’s a habit rather than a topic
- Refactoring safely, in small steps, on code you didn’t write
- Continuous integration that actually stops a broken build
- Architecture and design decisions that survive contact with change
- Forecasting a sprint backlog you can sustain instead of one you hope for
- Using the Scrum events to coordinate engineering work, not to report on it
Who this is for
- Developers and engineers on a Scrum team who want the technical half done properly
- Teams whose sprints keep ending in an integration scramble
- Anyone shipping increments who’s tired of “done” meaning five different things
- Developers who want a credential that says they can do the work, not just name the framework
What you get
- Two days of live, hands-on practice — you work in code, not slides
- Your Scrum Alliance Certified Scrum Developer® (CSD) credential
- A 2-year membership with the Scrum Alliance
- A student handbook packed with more information than we can cover during the class, with plenty of room for notes
- Lifetime access to the online version of the materials, including notifications whenever updates are made
- Our risk-free guarantee that you will get your money’s worth from the course
- Discounted access to all future Artisan training events
The fine print
Agenda
Two days, eight hours each, and most of it hands-on. You’ll be writing, breaking and repairing code alongside other people — which is the only way these habits actually stick.
Day 1 — Build It Right
Focus: Increments, tests, and design
- Take a backlog item all the way to a working increment
- Write the test first, and find out why that changes the design
- Apply design principles under the pressure of changing requirements
- Agree a definition of done the whole team can defend
Day 2 — Keep It Right
Focus: Refactoring, integration, and flow
- Refactor in small safe steps, on code nobody on the team wrote
- Set up continuous integration that gates rather than reports
- Forecast a sprint backlog you can actually finish
- Use the daily scrum to unblock engineering work, not narrate it
Scrum Alliance requires at least 14 hours of formal training for the CSD. These two days run sixteen.
Remote cohorts run the same two days, eight hours each.
Training formats
The CSD spans two days, eight hours each, in both in-person and remote classes. It is deliberately hands-on: the exercises are the class, and the slides are the interruption.
2 days of live, professional training
Our risk-free guarantees that you will get your money’s worth from the course
A student handbook packed with more information than we can cover during the class, with plenty of room for notes
Lifetime access to the online version of the materials, including notifications whenever updates are made
2-year membership with the Scrum Alliance
Discounted access to all future Artisan training events
Risk-free guarantee
Satisfaction is guaranteed. If, for any reason, you are dissatisfied with the class by the lunch break on the first day (or after the first session in a cohort), let us know, and we’ll refund your class fees. No questions will be asked.
Prerequisites
None. The CSD is the foundational course in the Scrum Alliance developer track — you don’t need a CSM or any other certification to take it.
You should be comfortable reading and writing code in some language, though. This class teaches engineering practice by doing it, and the exercises assume you can follow along in an editor.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Certified Scrum Developer (CSD)?
A certification from Scrum Alliance that says you have a working understanding of Scrum and agile principles, and that you can do the engineering work an agile team depends on.
It is the foundational course in the developer track. Most people who hold it write software, and this class is taught for them — you will be in code for most of two days.
Who should take this course?
– Developers and engineers working on a Scrum team
– Teams whose sprints keep ending in an integration scramble
– Technical leads trying to raise the floor on how their team builds
– Anyone responsible for an increment who wants “done” to mean one thing
If your process is fine and your codebase is the bottleneck, this is the right class.
Do I need to be a software developer?
For this class, effectively yes. Scrum Alliance allows CSD courses to be taught for non-technical “developers” — anyone who creates an increment — and some trainers run it that way.
This one is the technical version. You will be reading and writing code in the exercises, so if you don’t work in a codebase you will get more out of the CSM or the Product Owner track.
Do I need a CSM first?
No. The CSD has no prerequisite certification.
If Scrum itself is new to you, the CSM or the self-paced Basic Agile and Scrum Fundamentals will make the first morning easier — but neither is required.
How do I actually earn the certification?
Three things. Complete at least 14 hours of formal training with a Scrum Alliance-approved CSD trainer — these two days cover that.
Demonstrate your understanding through the course assessment. Scrum Alliance lets the trainer choose the form; this class evaluates you on the work you do in the room rather than with a separate exam.
Then accept your CSD licence and add the certification to your Scrum Alliance profile.
Is there an exam?
Not a separate one. Scrum Alliance permits either an exam or an active, classroom-based evaluation, and this course uses the latter — you are assessed on the exercises you work through over the two days.
In practice that means showing up and doing the work is the assessment.
How long does the certification last?
Two years. Renewing it takes a submission fee and a number of Scrum Education Units (SEUs), which you earn through continued learning — including any future Artisan class.
What comes after the CSD?
The developer track continues with the Advanced Certified Scrum Developer (A-CSD) and then Certified Scrum Professional — Developer (CSP-D).
Plenty of people go sideways instead, into the CSM or the Product Owner track, because the constraint on their team turned out not to be the code after all.