Domain 1: Application Design and Development Concepts
- Deciding when a requirement fits a scoped application versus configuring an existing app, and the declarative-first principle.
- Scoped application fundamentals: the scope prefix, Public, Protected, and Private artifact protection, and cross-scope access.
- Data model design: creating a new table versus extending an existing table like task, and dictionary field types and attributes.
- Relationships: reference fields versus list collectors for many-to-many, and Database Views.
- Application modules and the app navigator.
- The tools to build an app (Studio and App Engine Studio) and application versioning.
Domain 2: Security and Restricting Access
- Roles, the contains-roles hierarchy, and assigning roles to users and groups.
- Access Controls (ACLs): table-level versus field-level, wildcards, and the auto-generated defaults.
- ACL evaluation: a more specific table.field rule wins, all conditions in one ACL must pass (AND), and multiple matching ACLs are OR.
- ACL scripting with the current object, the answer variable, and gs.hasRole().
- GlideSystem security methods and GlideRecordSecure versus GlideRecord for ACL enforcement.
- Data Policies for server-side enforcement, and application-scope protection as a security control.
Domain 3: Application User Experience
- Forms and lists: the Form Designer, sections, related lists, and list layout.
- UI Policies (Mandatory, Visible, Read-only, Reverse if false) versus Client Scripts.
- Client Script types (onLoad, onChange, onSubmit, onCellEdit) and the g_form and g_user APIs.
- Debugging client scripts with jslog and the field watcher.
- UI Actions: form, list, and related-list buttons, and the Client checkbox with GlideAjax.
- Record Producers that map catalog variables to a target table.
Domain 4: Working with Data in ServiceNow
- GlideRecord: querying with addQuery and addEncodedQuery, next(), getValue and setValue, insert, update, updateMultiple, and deleteRecord.
- GlideAggregate for COUNT, SUM, MIN, MAX, and AVG with groupBy, and when to use it instead of GlideRecord.
- GlideRecordSecure for ACL-enforced queries and Database Views for reporting.
- Import Sets: Data Sources, the staging table, and Transform Maps with coalesce fields and transform scripts.
- Inbound integration with Scripted REST APIs and outbound REST and SOAP Messages with authentication profiles.
- GlideDateTime manipulation and attachment handling.
Domain 5: Automating Applications for Collaboration and Productivity
- Business Rules: the before, after, async, and display types, current versus previous, and avoiding recursion.
- Script Includes: client-callable includes extending AbstractAjaxProcessor, called from client scripts with GlideAjax.
- Flow Designer: flows, actions, subflows, and triggers, plus migrating legacy Workflows to Flow Designer.
- IntegrationHub spokes for calling external systems from a flow.
- Notifications, Email Notifications, and Inbound Email Actions.
- Events with gs.eventQueue, Scheduled Script Executions, and application properties.
Domain 6: Managing Applications
- Update Sets: the default update set, capturing changes, local versus remote, and preview, collisions, and back-out.
- What belongs in an update set versus needing a manual data load.
- The Application Repository and ServiceNow Store for publishing and installing apps, and version tracking.
- Source control with Git integration (push and pull) and Team Development as an alternative.
- The Automated Test Framework (ATF): Test Suites, step types, scheduling, and reading results.
- The application lifecycle in Studio, debugging with the Script Debugger and system logs, and Background Scripts.
ServiceNow Certified Application Developer (CAD) exam tips
- Managing Applications is the single heaviest domain at 25 percent, and Security, Working with Data, and Automating Applications are each 20 percent - together they are 85 percent of the exam. Invest most of your study there.
- Know ACL evaluation cold: a more specific table.field ACL wins over table.*, within one ACL the role and condition and script must all pass, and across multiple matching ACLs any one that grants access is enough. GlideRecordSecure enforces ACLs while GlideRecord does not.
- Master GlideRecord and GlideAggregate: use GlideAggregate (not GlideRecord getRowCount in a loop) for counts and sums, and never place a query or update inside a loop unnecessarily. Expect short server-side script snippets.
- Be precise on Business Rule types: before for same-record field changes, after for related-record work, async for later processing, and display for the g_scratchpad. Know current versus previous and how to avoid recursive rules with setWorkflow(false).
- For Managing Applications, understand Update Sets end to end (retrieve, preview, resolve collisions, commit, back out), what an update set does and does not capture, and how source control (Git) and ATF fit the application lifecycle.
Study guide FAQ
How many questions are on the exam and what is the passing score?
There are 60 questions (single-answer multiple-choice and multiple-select) in 90 minutes. ServiceNow does not officially publish the passing score; the community consensus is around 70 percent. The exam is delivered through Pearson VUE online or at a test center.
Is the Certified System Administrator (CSA) a prerequisite?
No. The CSA is recommended background knowledge but is not a required prerequisite. To unlock exam eligibility you must complete the Application Development Fundamentals course on ServiceNow University; the Scripting in ServiceNow Fundamentals course is also recommended.
Do I need to write code?
Yes, some. CAD is a developer exam. You should be able to read and write server-side scripts (GlideRecord, Business Rules, Script Includes) and client scripts (g_form), and understand ACL scripting - while also knowing when a no-code configuration is the better choice.
Which platform release does the exam cover?
ServiceNow moved CAD to a continuously updated mainline blueprint rather than a single release-pinned exam; it currently tracks the latest platform release. The core developer mechanics (GlideRecord, ACLs, Business Rules, update sets) are stable across releases even as domain weights shift.
Is CertGrid practice official ServiceNow material?
No. CertGrid is an independent practice platform and is not affiliated with or endorsed by ServiceNow. These questions are original and written to mirror the current exam objectives so you can rehearse them. Always confirm the current exam blueprint on ServiceNow University before your exam.