CIRO Supervisor Exam Study Plan

Use this page to turn CIRO Supervisor Exam into a repeatable control-review process instead of a loose reading project. Pair the timing blocks below with the Supervisor guide, the Cheat Sheet, FAQ, Resources, and web practice.

Before you start

• Treat this as an ownership exam. Many questions are really asking what should have been approved, reviewed, escalated, or restricted sooner.
• Keep one running note sheet for account approvals, account activity, Approved Persons, and communications because the fact patterns often cross those lines.
• Start timed work only after you can say which control came first, who owned it, and what evidence the supervisor should review.

30-day intensive track

• Week 1: General regulatory framework; Supervisory structure: Investment Dealer responsibilities; Specific supervision responsibilities for business and operations
• Week 2: Specific supervision responsibilities for account approvals; Specific supervision responsibilities for account activity; Specific supervision responsibilities for Approved Persons
• Week 3: Specific supervision responsibilities for trading and market rules; Specific supervision responsibilities for advertisements, sales literature and communications and research; Risks associated with Investment Dealer activity and registered locations
• Week 4: run mixed timed sets, review every miss, and re-drill the 2-3 topics that still produce hesitation.

60-day balanced track

• Weeks 1-2: General regulatory framework; Supervisory structure: Investment Dealer responsibilities; Specific supervision responsibilities for business and operations
• Weeks 3-4: Specific supervision responsibilities for account approvals; Specific supervision responsibilities for account activity
• Weeks 5-6: Specific supervision responsibilities for Approved Persons; Specific supervision responsibilities for trading and market rules
• Weeks 7-8: Specific supervision responsibilities for advertisements, sales literature and communications and research; Risks associated with Investment Dealer activity and registered locations

90-day part-time track

• Weeks 1-2: General regulatory framework; Supervisory structure: Investment Dealer responsibilities
• Weeks 3-4: Specific supervision responsibilities for business and operations; Specific supervision responsibilities for account approvals
• Weeks 5-6: Specific supervision responsibilities for account activity; Specific supervision responsibilities for Approved Persons
• Weeks 7-8: Specific supervision responsibilities for trading and market rules
• Weeks 9-10: Specific supervision responsibilities for advertisements, sales literature and communications and research
• Weeks 11-12: Risks associated with Investment Dealer activity and registered locations
• Across the final two weeks: slow down, clean up note cards and rule sheets, then finish with timed mixed review rather than new content.

Weekly execution pattern

What stronger review looks like

• Tag misses by why they failed: wrong owner, wrong timing, wrong evidence, or wrong escalation level.
• Review account-activity questions by asking what should have been noticed earlier at account opening or periodic review.
• Treat Approved Person issues as supervision-system questions, not just conduct questions.
• When communications or research appear, ask who had approval or retention responsibility before looking for the content mistake.

Final stretch

• Run timed mixed sets in web practice.
• Review every miss and write a one-line rule: what controlled answer was better, and why?
• Re-drill the weakest control family instead of chasing random new questions.
• Work toward roughly 120 seconds per question so timing pressure does not force bad approval or escalation decisions on exam day.
• In the last week, favor mixed review that forces you to move across approvals, activity review, and communication supervision in one sitting.