CIRO Derivatives Exam Study Plan

Use the topic map below to turn CIRO Derivatives Exam into a repeatable weekly process instead of a loose reading project.

30-day intensive track

• Week 1: The client relationship; Regulatory documentation; Types and features of derivatives
• Week 2: Derivative pricing; Derivative trading, clearing and settlement; Speculating, hedging and other investment strategies
• Week 3: Integrity in the derivative markets; Standards of conduct and conflicts of interest
• 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: The client relationship; Regulatory documentation
• Weeks 3-4: Types and features of derivatives; Derivative pricing
• Weeks 5-6: Derivative trading, clearing and settlement; Speculating, hedging and other investment strategies
• Weeks 7-8: Integrity in the derivative markets; Standards of conduct and conflicts of interest

90-day part-time track

• Weeks 1-2: The client relationship; Regulatory documentation
• Weeks 3-4: Types and features of derivatives; Derivative pricing
• Weeks 5-6: Derivative trading, clearing and settlement
• Weeks 7-8: Speculating, hedging and other investment strategies
• Weeks 9-10: Integrity in the derivative markets
• Weeks 11-12: Standards of conduct and conflicts of interest
• Across the final two weeks: slow down, clean up note cards and rule sheets, then finish with timed mixed review rather than new content.

Final stretch

• Run timed mixed sets in practice .
• Review every miss and write a one-line rule: what controlled answer was better, and why?
• Re-drill the weakest topic group instead of chasing random new questions.
• Work toward roughly 90 seconds per question so timing pressure does not force bad decisions on exam day.