CIRO Proficiency Model for Approved Persons under the Investment Dealer and Partially Consolidated Rules- Publication of syllabus and other materials- Eight remaining exams

In support of its proposed proficiency model1, CIRO has committed to publishing a syllabus and practice exam, as a tool for education providers who may decide to offer preparatory courses for its exams.

The publication of the syllabus and practice exam also create an opportunity to learn for those that may wish to self-study for an exam. Details relating to the proposed proficiency model can be found in Bulletin 24-0206, published on July 4, 2024 and 25-0110 published on April 17, 2025.

CIRO is shifting from a course centric model with exams tied to courses, to an assessment centric model without pre-requisite courses, with some mandatory education and experience. This is an internationally recognized approach by securities regulators.

Purpose of the syllabus and practice examination

For each CIRO exam, we committed to publishing a syllabus and practice exam and will also provide guidance to candidates on how to study for each exam. The purpose of these documents is to provide the necessary information to:

• potential education providers who may be developing preparatory courses for each exam; the copy of the syllabus is a critical document for finalizing their courses.
• potential candidates who may want to know more about how CIRO will approach its exam design process and how they may be able to self-study for each exam. The documents outlined above are tools that support candidates who wish to self-study.

At this time, we are publishing a syllabus and guide for studying, on our Exam Hub for the following exams:

• Retail Registered Representative (Securities)
• Institutional Registered Representative (Securities)
• Directors and Executives
• Supervisors
• Chief Compliance Officer
• Chief Financial Officer
• Derivatives
• Trader

We are also publishing the practice exam for the following:

• Retail Registered Representative (Securities)
• Institutional Registered Representative (Securities)
• Directors and Executives

The practice exam for the remaining 5 exams will be published early September.

You can access the syllabus, practice exam, and guide for studying for the Canadian Investment Regulatory Examination (CIRE) through Canadian Investment Regulatory Exam (CIRE) | Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization.

Development and use of the syllabus and practice examination

The syllabus and exams are developed with support from Fitch Learning2. CIRO, with support from Fitch Learning, will be ensuring that examinations are valid, reliable, and fair through the following accepted methods:

• Each syllabus reflects the related competency profile, which was developed through a rigorous job task analysis, to ensure the validity of the examinations.
• Each syllabus includes the relevant learning outcomes with appropriate taxonomy, parameters, and weighting for each exam.
• The syllabus is developed through a review process which includes working with a Syllabus Committee made up of internal and external Subject Matter Experts, and approval by CIRO.
• The syllabus informs the coverage and level of difficulty for all examination questions. The questions are validated through an Exam Committee for each exam.
• All examinations will undergo a piloting process to ensure item robustness and reliability and a valid passing score.
  • All examinations will be subject to rigorous psychometric analysis that will ensure the on-going reliability of the exams including item analysis to ensure that questions are fair and at an appropriate level of difficulty.
  • Standard setting will be done according to psychometrically recognized methods. Standard setting is the methodology used to define a pass-score for each examination.
• Any issues identified through the above processes will be reviewed by CIRO to ensure on-going defensibility of the exams.
• The practice exam is an equivalent form of the exam with items drawn for an extensive question bank and that there will be 5 additional forms created for each examination type.

CIRO is working towards operationalizing the proficiency model in a timely manner.

For more information on CIRO’s proposed proficiency model and upcoming publications, please visit: Proficiency | Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization.

Updated competency profiles

We are making available an updated version of competency profiles for some of the categories impacted by the Derivates Modernization Amendments to better reflect the current requirements. The related syllabus for each exam type already incorporates in those amendments and the publication of the updated competency profiles is for completeness to reflect current requirements.

The latest copy of the following competency profiles will be available on Competency Hub page.

Appendix 1 - Competency Profile- Retail Registered Representatives and Investment Representatives

Appendix 2 - Competency Profile- Institutional Registered Representatives and Investment Representatives

Appendix 3 - Competency Profile- Directors

Appendix 4 - Competency Profile- Executives

Appendix 5 - Competency Profile- Ultimate Designated Persons

Appendix 6 - Competency Profile- Chief Compliance Officers

Appendix 7 - Competency Profile- Chief Financial Officers

Appendix 8 - Competency Profile- Supervisors

Appendix 9 - Competency Profile- Traders

Appendix 10 - Competency Profile- Associate Portfolio Managers and Portfolio Managers

Appendix 11 - Reference document for competency profile- Retail RR and IR

Appendix 12 - Reference document for competency profile- Institutional RR/IR

Appendix 13 - Reference document for competency profiles- Directors, Executives and Ultimate Designated person

Appendix 14 - Reference document for competency profile- Chief Compliance Officer

Appendix 15 - Reference document for competency profile- Chief Financial Officer

Appendix 16 - Reference document for competency profile- Supervisors

Appendix 17 - Reference document for competency profile- Traders

Appendix 18 - Reference document for competency profile- Associate Portfolio Managers and Portfolio Managers

• 1

  Bulletin 24-0206, published on July 4, 2024,

• 2

  CIRO Announces New Proficiency Model Partnership with Fitch Learning | Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization