The SC 900 exam pattern runs 45 minutes and requires a scaled score of 700 or higher to pass. Microsoft does not publish a fixed question count or a breakdown of question types for this exam, so treat any specific number you see elsewhere as unofficial. The exam is delivered through Pearson VUE, with a separate booking route through Certiport for students and educators.
The SC 900 exam pattern is simpler to describe than most Microsoft exams, mainly because Microsoft publishes fewer specifics for this one. Here is exactly what the official exam page and study guide confirm, and where they stay silent.
SC-900 exam duration and passing score
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Duration | 45 minutes |
| Passing score | 700 or higher |
| Question count | Not published by Microsoft |
| Question types | Not published by Microsoft |
| Delivery | Pearson VUE (also Certiport for students and educators) |
Microsoft states a score of 700 or higher is required to pass, per the study guide's scoring page. It does not publish the scale the 700 sits on, or how many questions make up the exam, so do not trust a site that gives you a precise count with no source — Microsoft simply has not released one for SC-900.
SC-900 exam duration in context
Forty-five minutes is short compared with most role-based Microsoft exams, which often run closer to two hours. That means the SC-900 exam pattern rewards recognizing a concept quickly over working through a long multi-step scenario. Expect direct, description-style questions ("what does this capability do," "which service would you use") rather than long case studies, since the exam's scope is fundamentals-level.
Question types on the SC-900 exam pattern
Microsoft does not publish the SC-900 question types on its exam page. Fundamentals-level Microsoft exams commonly use multiple-choice and multiple-response formats, but treat that as a general pattern across the fundamentals family rather than a confirmed fact about this specific exam, since Microsoft has not stated it here. Our own mock, covered on the practice test page, is multiple-choice and multiple-response only and does not attempt to reproduce any interactive task-based item Microsoft may include.
Delivery: test center or online
Microsoft schedules the SC-900 exam through Pearson VUE, and separately offers scheduling "through Certiport if you are a student or an educator." The official page does not clearly separate a test-center option from an online-proctored option, so if that distinction matters to you, confirm it directly during booking rather than assuming either is guaranteed. See the cost and booking page for the booking flow itself.
Retake policy
If you do not pass on your first attempt, Microsoft's retake policy allows you to retake 24 hours later. For any attempt after that, the required wait varies, so check Microsoft's retake policy page directly before scheduling a second retake.
Exam languages
Microsoft offers the SC-900 exam in a range of languages beyond English, including Japanese, Korean, French, Spanish, German, and several others listed on the official exam page. If you plan to take the exam in a language other than English, confirm availability for your specific language directly on Microsoft's exam page before booking, since language options can change between exam versions.
What Microsoft confirms versus what it leaves out
To summarize the exam pattern in plain terms: Microsoft is specific about duration and passing score, and vague about everything else that shapes difficulty — question count, the exact mix of question types, and whether a given booking is test-center or online-proctored. That gap is exactly why this page separates confirmed facts from anything you might read elsewhere as a guess dressed up as a number. When a number is not in the table above, treat it as unconfirmed until you see it stated on Microsoft's own exam page.
How this fits your prep
Once you know the exam pattern, the next steps are to confirm you meet the prerequisites, work through the exam objectives by weight, and build a study plan around the 45-minute format. When you are ready to rehearse under time pressure, the sample questions page shows the scenario style Microsoft favors at this level.
Exam facts on this page come from Microsoft’s own pages (official exam page). Prices, versions and policies change — confirm there before you book.