Venturing Advancement

Advancement in the Venturing program is very different from the Cub Scout and Boy Scout programs. The Bronze, Gold, Silver, Ranger, Quest, and Trust Awards are listed in detail on the BSA National Council Venturing website*. To clarify some aspects of the Venturing advancement program the following was released by the BSA Venturing Division.

Venturing Advancement Record Keeping: There is an application for both the Gold* and Silver* Awards. Applications can be found in the Venturer/Ranger Handbook or Venturing Leader Manual and on www.scouting.org*. The application is completed by the crew and turned in to the local council service center for Scout Executive approval. It is not necessary to send a copy of the application to the national office for approval. Like all BSA advancement, councils should require an Advancement Record Form when a crew request advancement. All Bronze awards and the Ranger do not require an application, only an Advancement Record Form. Applications for the Sea Scout Quartermaster award must be approved by the Scout Executive and forwarded to the national Venturing division who controls the medals.

Venturing Advancement Reviews: There is no review other than that done by the crew advisor for the Bronze awards and Ranger award. The Gold and Silver awards require a crew review. The Venturer Handbook says, “The crew president, in conjunction with the crew advisor, should then appoint a review committee of four to six people including Venturers and adults.” It is not necessary to do a district or council review such as we often do with the Eagle rank.

Eagle Board of Reviews for Venturers: It is recommended that the Board of Review have at least one member who is familiar with the Venturing program. Without a person knowledgeable of the Venturing program, it is human nature to use the knowledge that is known, Boy Scouting. Even though the boy before the Eagle review board was a Boy Scout, he probably has earned much of the award in a different arena, Venturing. Even though Cub Scouting, Boy Scouting, and Venturing all share the same aims and purposes, their methods are different. As an example, in Boy Scouting, the uniform is a method, whereas in Venturing, the uniform is not a method. Even though Venturers are encouraged to wear the Venturing uniform, they are not required to do so. So, requiring a boy to stand before the Eagle review board in his Venturing uniform is not mandatory. Nor is it a requirement to wear a Boy Scout uniform. Questions should be relevant to his
program, crew leadership positions, and activities. These questions could be similar or quite different than the traditional review board questions based on a troop experience. That is why it is important to have at least one board member who knows Venturing.

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