SHRM certification

SHRM-SCP — SHRM Senior Certified Professional

For senior HR leaders who develop policy and drive strategy at the enterprise level.

Who it's for: Senior-level HR leaders working at the strategic level — developing policy and overseeing enterprise-wide HR operations.

Eligibility

Minimum 3 years performing strategic-level HR or HR-related work (at least 1,000 hours per calendar year)
Or: current SHRM-CP holders with at least 3 years in the credential who are working in or transitioning into a strategic HR role

Founding-member price$89

Planned standard price$139

Lifetime access, no subscription. Planned pricing — nothing is billed until early access opens.

Exam format

Questions

134 total: 80 scored knowledge-based + 54 scored situational-judgment, plus 24 unscored field-test items

Time allowed

3 hours 40 minutes (within a 4-hour appointment)

Delivery

Computer-based testing at Prometric test centers

Scoring

Scaled score range of 120–200; SHRM does not publicly disclose the exact passing cut score

Exam content outline

The knowledge domains this exam draws from, and how heavily each is weighted.

People knowledge		19%
Leadership cluster		19%
Organization knowledge		18%
Business cluster		17.5%
Interpersonal cluster		13.5%
Workplace knowledge		13%

Tests the same SHRM BASK content as SHRM-CP, but at the strategic proficiency level — policy development and enterprise-wide oversight rather than day-to-day implementation.

Sample questions

A preview of the style and difficulty you can expect from the SHRM-SCP question bank.

A company is expanding into three new markets. At the SHRM-SCP strategic level, what should HR do first?

Wait for each market to open before taking any action
Assess workforce, compliance, and culture needs for each market and build an HR strategy aligned to the expansion ✓
Apply the headquarters' HR policy unchanged in every market
Leave HR planning entirely to local managers with no central strategy

Strategic-level HR leadership proactively assesses needs across markets rather than reacting market-by-market.

Which decision best demonstrates the SHRM-SCP-level Leadership & Navigation competency?

Making a policy change without informing any stakeholders
Building consensus among executives while steering the organization through a major HR policy shift ✓
Avoiding difficult conversations with leadership
Delegating all strategic decisions to a junior HR generalist

Leadership & Navigation at the senior level involves guiding the organization through change while building stakeholder buy-in.

Recertification

3-year cycle; 60 Professional Development Credits (PDCs), or retake the exam in the final 12 months of the cycle.

Other credentials

Get in before SHRM-SCP prep launches.

Founding members lock in $89 pricing before it moves to $139.

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