After completing a regular class, a Pathfinder can take one more step: the advanced classes. For each of the six regular classes, Friend, Companion, Explorer, Pioneer, Ranger, and Guide, there's a matching advanced class that follows the same age range but asks for extra, more in-depth requirements. In order, they are: Nature Friend, Hiking Companion, Field and Forest Researcher, New Frontiers Pioneer, Forest Hiker, and Exploration Guide. They aren't "extra" classes tacked onto the calendar, they're a deeper version of the same stage: a young person who finishes the regular class within the year can go after the advanced one and grow a bit more in nature study, camping, service, and honors. In this article you'll get to know each one, understand how they work, and see why they're worth pursuing.
What the advanced classes are
Beyond the six regular classes, the Pathfinder program offers a matching advanced class for each one. According to the official Adventist website, every advanced class follows the age of the regular class it's linked to, in other words, it isn't a new age bracket, but a path of deeper study within the same stage.
In practice, the advanced class picks up where the regular one leaves off. Advanced class cards typically require the Pathfinder to complete the regular class for that age first, then fulfill a set of extra requirements, usually more elaborate and a notch more challenging in nature study, campcraft, service, and honors.
That's why the names all point to "going further": Friend becomes Nature Friend, Pioneer becomes New Frontiers Pioneer, Guide becomes Exploration Guide. The name itself signals the idea, deepen, explore, and advance from what's already been achieved.
The six advanced classes, one by one
Every regular class has its advanced counterpart, and the official names confirmed by the Pathfinder Department (Adventistas.org) are these. Notice how each advanced class follows the age and color of the regular class from that stage:
What changes compared to the regular class
The main difference is depth. The regular class covers the essentials for that age; the advanced class revisits those themes and adds more elaborate requirements, with more responsibility and more hands-on practice. The balance between faith, nature, service, camping, and leadership stays the same, but the level goes up.
One notable point is the number of extra honors. In the advanced Pioneer class (New Frontiers Pioneer), for example, the official card requires at least five honors, including Maps and Compass and Campfires and Outdoor Cooking, plus optional items like plant identification, semaphore code, nautical code, sign language, or braille. It's a clear extra step beyond the regular Pioneer class.
Another example is Hiking Companion, whose advanced requirements include backpacking hikes and honors from areas such as household skills, science and health, mission and community activities, or agricultural activities. Across all the advanced classes, the logic is the same: deepen and expand on what the regular class started.
"The advanced classes follow the age of their matching regular class, they're the extra step for those who want to go deeper into the same stage."Summarized from official Pathfinder materials
How a Pathfinder earns an advanced class
The usual path is: first the Pathfinder completes the regular class for that age; then, if they want to and there's time left in the year, they move on to the matching advanced class. The advanced class's requirements are recorded on its own card, and the counselor tracks and signs off on each item completed, just as with the regular classes.
Because it requires extra honors and more challenging activities, many of them outdoors, like camping trips, hikes, and nature research, the advanced class usually calls for a bit more dedication and planning from the club. That's why not every Pathfinder completes the advanced class every year, and that's perfectly normal: it's an optional deepening step, not a requirement.
Just like with the regular classes, completing an advanced class is recognized at Investiture, the ceremony where the club and church present the patch and celebrate the young person's growth. The advanced class patch shows that Pathfinder went beyond the basics for their age.
Why it's worth pursuing the advanced class
For the young person, the advanced class is an invitation to grow further. It pushes the Pathfinder out of their comfort zone with extra challenges in nature, camping, and service, exactly the kind of activity that shapes the life of someone who comes up through the club. Those who take on an advanced class tend to come out more prepared and more confident.
For the club and its leaders, the advanced classes help keep Pathfinders engaged, especially those who finish the regular class before the year ends. Instead of "waiting" for the next age, the young person has a clear path to keep learning and serving.
And there's a long-term effect: by reaching Guide and Exploration Guide with all that experience behind them, the Pathfinder is better prepared for the leadership classes, continuing their journey as a leader within the club. In the end, the advanced classes are a springboard to ever-greater service.
"The name of each advanced class already reveals the idea: go further from what's already been achieved."Pathfinder Department, Adventistas.org