Venturing Boards of Review
The board of review for Discovery, Pathfinder and Summit: who sits on it, who chairs it, what is discussed, and what happens after — including the parts that are nothing like Scouts BSA.
Venturing Ranks Appeals Boards of Review Process Rank Venturing
The plan behind this
What this page is
The Venturing board of review, from the completed requirements to the certificate, drawn from the Guide to Advancement topics 8.0.5.0 through 8.0.7.2, cited on every item.
Three things that are not like Scouts BSA
The Advisor conference comes last. In Venturing the conference happens after all the other requirements for a rank have been fulfilled, and then the board of review is scheduled. Reading across from the Scoutmaster conference gets the order wrong.
Discovery and Pathfinder boards are the candidate's peers. The board is made up of Venturers from the crew and is chaired by the crew president. Two registered adults aged 21 or over must be present as advisors — but they are not members of the board, and they are not there to ask the questions. They are there to answer them, and there must never be more adults present than Venturers.
The Summit chair is not a unit person. The chair is an adult who is a Venturing-certified member of the local council or district advancement committee, or their designated representative. The board must not sit at all until the local council has verified the Summit Rank Application.
What the review is for
It is not a retest and not an examination. The board reviews the quality of the candidate's experience through discussions and stories about the fun, adventure and benefits of Venturing, touching on each part of ALPS — Adventure, Leadership, Personal Growth and Service. A unanimous vote is required to approve, and the chair is a voting member.
What can be appealed
A Summit denial can be appealed. A Discovery or Pathfinder denial cannot — the Guide says adverse decisions on those two ranks are not appealable, and after a Summit denial there is no second board of review either, only the appeal.
How to read the graph
An arrow points from the thing that has to happen first to the thing it unlocks. Nested items are part of the step above them rather than steps of their own. Dotted lines are recommended order carrying no obligation; dashed lines apply only in the case written on the arrow.
Sources for this page
- Guide to Advancement, 2025, Section 8.0.5.0 — Venturing boards of review: the procedures that apply to the Discovery, Pathfinder and Summit ranks.
- Guide to Advancement, 2025, Section 8.0.6.0 — Particulars for the Discovery and Pathfinder ranks: a board of the candidate's peers, chaired by the crew president.
- Guide to Advancement, 2025, Section 8.0.7.0 — Particulars for the Summit rank: board composition, the council verification gate, and the appeal route.
- Guide to Advancement, 2025, Section 8.0.5.4 — A unanimous vote is required for the approval of Venturing advancement, and the chair is a voting member.
Last checked against its sources on .