Answering: “True or False: Product Owners must create clear and unambiguous acceptance criteria for each Product Backlog item before it may be selected in Sprint Planning.”

False. Scrum does not require acceptance criteria, let alone clear and unambiguous ones, before an item can be selected. Items need to be understood well enough to be done within one Sprint.

Exam Question

True or False: Product Owners must create clear and unambiguous acceptance criteria for each Product Backlog item before it may be selected in Sprint Planning.

• A. True
• B. False

Correct Answer

B. False

Why This Is the Correct Answer

The Scrum Guide says that “Product Backlog items that can be Done by the Scrum Team within one Sprint are deemed ready for selection in a Sprint Planning event.” It does not mention acceptance criteria. Many teams find acceptance criteria helpful, but they are a complementary practice. Details also keep emerging during the Sprint, and the Guide expects scope to be “clarified and renegotiated with the Product Owner as more is learned.”

Why the Other Options Are Wrong

A. True This turns an optional practice into a rule and assumes everything can be known up front. In complex work, items only need enough clarity to start, and the Product Owner keeps clarifying during the Sprint.

Exam Tip

True/False questions with “must” in them are usually false on Scrum.org exams, especially when the “must” is a practice the Scrum Guide never mentions.

Key Takeaways

• An item is ready when the team can complete it within one Sprint.
• Acceptance criteria are optional and need not be complete up front.
• Clarification continues throughout the Sprint.