GitHub Foundations Is a Hands-On Exam, Not a Git Trivia Test
GitHub Foundations (exam GH-900) is GitHub's beginner certification, but the candidates who struggle usually study it the wrong way. They memorize definitions for branch, fork, pull request, issue, Actions, Dependabot, and project board without ever touching the product. The 2026 exam rewards the opposite: actual use of GitHub.
GitHub Foundations at a Glance (2026)
The current facts, verified against Microsoft Learn and GitHub Learn in July 2026:
| Detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Exam code | GH-900 |
| Level | Beginner |
| Scored questions | 60 multiple-choice |
| Pretest (unscored) items | approximately 10-15 |
| Time limit | 100 minutes |
| Format | Proctored, closed-book, may include interactive components |
| Fee | $99 USD (regional pricing may apply) |
| Validity | 2 years |
| Languages | English, Spanish, Portuguese (Brazil), Korean, Japanese |
| Delivery | Pearson VUE testing center or online proctoring |
| Scheduling | Microsoft Learn credential page or examregistration.github.com |
| Retake | 24-hour wait after first fail, 14 days for later retakes, max 5 per year |
| Renewal | Retake the full exam at a 50% discount within a 6-month window |
GitHub does not publish a fixed numeric passing score; the proctored assessment returns an immediate pass/fail result and a score report. Treat any specific percentage you see on third-party sites as an estimate, not an official figure.
Most outdated summaries on the web still quote 75 questions, 120 minutes, a 3-year validity, and PSI scheduling. All four were replaced. The exam was significantly revised in January 2026 (objectives added, removed, and reworded), and scheduling moved from PSI to Pearson VUE on July 1, 2025. Treat Microsoft Learn as the control page.
The Seven Domains and Where to Spend Your Time
The official GH-900 study guide (last updated February 19, 2026) lists seven domains with weight ranges, not fixed percentages. Spend the most time on the heaviest domains.
| Domain | Weight | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Understand Git and GitHub basics | 25-30% | Version control, Git vs GitHub, repositories, commits, branches, GitHub accounts, organizations, enterprise options, GitHub Flow, Markdown, GitHub Desktop and Mobile |
| Work with GitHub repositories | 10-15% | Repository creation, settings, permissions, visibility, templates, file management, commit history |
| Collaborate using GitHub | 10-15% | Forking, pull requests, code review, issues, labels, milestones, discussions, branch protection, CODEOWNERS |
| Apply modern development practices | 10-15% | GitHub Actions, Copilot, Codespaces, Packages, CI/CD workflows |
| Manage projects with GitHub | 5-10% | GitHub Projects, views (table, board, roadmap), insights, integration with issues and pull requests |
| Understand privacy, security, and administration | 10-15% | 2FA, Dependabot, secret scanning, code scanning, dependency graph, audit logs, organization and enterprise administration |
| Explore the GitHub community | 5-10% | Open source licenses, contributing, inner source, GitHub Sponsors, gists, community health files, forking workflows |
Git and GitHub basics is the largest single block, so do not skip the fundamentals. Collaboration, repositories, modern development, and security together cover the majority of the exam and are where hands-on muscle memory pays off most. Project management is the smallest domain but is easy points if you have actually used GitHub Projects views.
The Hands-On Repo Drill
Create a public or private practice repository and complete this sequence. If you can explain each step in plain English, you have covered more useful ground than a week of memorizing Git commands without context.
| Drill | What it teaches |
|---|---|
| Add a README, LICENSE, and community health files | Repository basics, community health, and open source licensing |
| Create a branch and edit a file | Branch workflow, commits, and commit history |
| Open a pull request | Collaboration, review, and merge vocabulary |
| Request a review and add comments | Code review mechanics and CODEOWNERS |
| Open issues with labels and milestones | Planning, tracking, and linking work to pull requests |
| Create a GitHub Project with table, board, and roadmap views | Project management domain and insights |
| Create a simple GitHub Actions workflow | Modern development, workflow triggers, YAML structure, jobs, steps, runners, secrets |
| Turn on and inspect security features | Dependabot, secret scanning, code scanning, 2FA, and audit logs |
The Actions drill matters more than candidates expect. Real exam feedback consistently flags GitHub Actions workflow file structure as a topic that goes beyond conceptual familiarity, so write at least one workflow file and trigger it.
Modern Development Features to Know
The modern development domain covers GitHub Actions, Copilot, Codespaces, and Packages. You do not need to build production CI/CD, but you should be able to:
- Describe what a workflow file contains (name, on triggers, jobs, steps, runs-on, uses, with, secrets) and read a simple one.
- Explain when to use Codespaces versus a local clone versus GitHub Desktop.
- Describe Copilot's role in code completion and pull request summaries at a high level.
- Explain what GitHub Packages stores and how it relates to releases.
Hand-write one workflow file that runs on push, checks out the repo, runs a single step, and uses a secret. That single exercise covers most of what the exam asks about Actions.
Security, Privacy, and Administration Essentials
This domain is where self-taught candidates lose points. The exam asks about features you only see if you click into repository Settings, not features you see on the default repo view.
Know these concretely:
- Two-factor authentication (2FA) for your account and organization enforcement.
- Dependabot alerts and version updates, and the dependency graph.
- Secret scanning and code scanning, and how they differ.
- Branch protection rules and rulesets, required reviews, status checks, and CODEOWNERS.
- Audit logs and what actions appear in them.
- The difference between a personal account, an organization, and an enterprise, plus the authentication options for GitHub Enterprise Server versus GitHub Enterprise Cloud. Candidates report that Enterprise Server versus Cloud authentication methods are a recurring trap.
You do not need GitHub Enterprise administration depth, but you should know the layer boundaries: account, repository, organization, enterprise.
A Two-Week Study Plan for New GitHub Users
Days 1-2: Read the official GH-900 study guide and complete the Microsoft Learn exam sandbox so the interface is familiar.
Days 3-5: Build the repository drill above. Write one-sentence definitions for every feature you touched.
Days 6-8: Take free practice at /practice/github-foundations and group every miss by domain. OpenExamPrep gives you 10 free AI-powered practice sessions per day, so use them to drill weak domains with explanations.
Days 9-11: Revisit Microsoft Learn modules for weak domains. Repeat the pull request, issue, Project, and Actions tasks until they feel automatic.
Days 12-14: Take the official practice assessment on Microsoft Learn, retake weak OpenExamPrep sets, and schedule through Pearson VUE only when GitHub workflows feel familiar.
Scheduling and Account Traps
GitHub certification scheduling moved from PSI to Pearson VUE on July 1, 2025. All certifications earned through PSI before that date remain visible in your GitHub Learn profile; certifications earned on or after July 1, 2025 appear in your Microsoft Learn transcript. Schedule through the Microsoft Learn credential page or examregistration.github.com.
Three practical traps that cost prepared candidates their sitting:
- Use a personal Microsoft account. Microsoft strongly recommends registering with a personal MSA. If you register with an organizational (work or school) Microsoft Entra account, your exam records are lost and unrecoverable if you leave that organization.
- Match your ID exactly. The name on your certification profile must match the government ID you present. Mismatched names are a common reason proctors pause or cancel a session.
- Run the system check early. For online proctoring, run the Pearson VUE system check before you pay, not the night before. Verify your webcam, microphone, closed-book workspace, and network.
If you are a verified student, the GitHub Student Developer Pack offers a one-time complimentary voucher that can be applied to either the Foundations exam or the Copilot exam (not both). Watch the voucher expiration date; the 2025-2026 batch expired June 30, 2026, and new batches are replenished on a published schedule.
Retake and Renewal Policy
If you fail, you can retake the exam. There is a 24-hour hold after the first failed attempt, a 14-day hold for each consecutive retake after that, and a maximum of 5 attempts per year. Retakes are not free; they cost the same exam fee.
GitHub certifications are valid for two years from the date you pass. To renew, retake the full exam. GitHub offers a 50% renewal discount voucher that you can claim starting three months before your certification expires and ending three months after it expires. If you miss that six-month window, you pay the full $99 fee again. Successfully renewing extends your certification for another two years from the renewal exam date. There is no annual renewal assessment for GitHub certifications, unlike other Microsoft certifications.
What to Do the Week of the Exam
In the final week, stop learning new features and start mixing domains the way the exam does. Build short practice sets that combine Git basics, collaboration, Actions, security, Projects, and community so you can switch context the way the exam expects.
Tag every practice miss by failure type: concept, workflow, feature boundary, or speed. Concept misses require documentation review. Workflow misses require a hands-on drill. Feature-boundary misses require a comparison table (for example, Dependabot versus secret scanning versus code scanning). Speed misses require smaller timed sets with strict review afterward.
Rehearse the first minute of each question: define the goal, underline the constraint, identify the GitHub layer (account, repo, org, enterprise), and pick the least risky action. That process is slower while practicing but faster on test day because it keeps you from rereading the same scenario three times.
Official Sources
Use these as your control pages:
- Microsoft Learn - GitHub Foundations credential page for the live exam duration, language list, Pearson VUE scheduling, and practice assessment.
- Microsoft Learn - Exam GH-900 study guide for the seven domains and current objective wording.
- GitHub Learn - Credentials for the official question count, fee, validity, retake, and renewal policy.
- GitHub Docs - About GitHub Certifications for the certification overview and preparation paths.
- GitHub Certification Registration portal for scheduling.
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