Ranks
Information
Boy Scout Rank Progression and Requirements
RANK
and EMBLEM: REQUIREMENTS (as of January 1, 2019)
SCOUT
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Scout/Joining Requirements:
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​All requirements for the Scout rank must be completed as a member of a troop or as a Lone Scout. If you have already completed these requirements as part of the Webelos Scouting Adventure, simply demonstrate your knowledge or skills to your Scoutmaster or other designated leader after joining the troop.
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1a. Repeat from memory the Scout Oath, Scout Law, Scout motto, and Scout slogan. In your own words, explain their meaning. 1b. Explain what Scout spirit is. Describe some ways you have shown Scout spirit by practicing the Scout Oath, Scout Law, Scout motto, and Scout slogan. 1c. Demonstrate the Scout sign, salute, and handshake. Explain when they should be used. 1d. Describe the First Class Scout badge and tell what each part stands for. Explain the significance of the First Class Scout badge. 1e. Repeat from memory the Outdoor Code. In your own words, explain what the Outdoor Code means to you. 1f. Repeat from memory the Pledge of Allegiance. In your own words, explain its meaning.
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2. After attending at least one Scout troop meeting, do the following: 2a. Describe how the Scouts in the troop provide its leadership. 2b. Describe the four steps of Scout advancement. 2c. Describe what the Scouts BSA ranks are and how they are earned. 2d. Describe what merit badges are and how they are earned.
3a. Explain the patrol method. Describe the types of patrols that are used in your troop. 3b. Become familiar with your patrol name, emblem, flag, and yell. Explain how these items create patrol spirit.
4a. Show how to tie a square knot, two half-hitches, and a taut-line hitch. Explain how each knot is used. 4b. Show the proper care of a rope by learning how to whip and fuse the ends of different kinds of rope.
5. Tell what you need to know about pocketknife safety.
6. With your parent or guardian, complete the exercises in the pamphlet How to Protect Your Children From Child Abuse: A Parent’s Guide and earn the Cyber Chip Award for your grade.
7. Since joining the troop and while working on the Scout rank, participate in a Scoutmaster conference.
TENDERFOOT
Tenderfoot Requirements:
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​1a. Present yourself to your leader, prepared for an overnight camping trip. Show the personal and camping gear you will use. Show the right way to pack and carry it. 1b. Spend at least one night on a patrol or troop campout. Sleep in a tent you have helped pitch. 1c. Tell how you practiced the Outdoor Code on a campout or outing.
2a. On the campout, assist in preparing one of the meals. Tell why it is important for each patrol member to share in meal preparation and cleanup. 2b. While on a campout, demonstrate the appropriate method of safely cleaning items used to prepare, serve, and eat a meal. 2c. Explain the importance of eating together as a patrol.
3a. Demonstrate a practical use of the square knot. 3b. Demonstrate a practical use of two half-hitches. 3c. Demonstrate a practical use of the taut-line hitch. 3d. Demonstrate proper care, sharpening, and use of the knife, saw, and ax. Describe when each should be used.
4a. Show first aid for the following: • Simple cuts and scrapes • Blisters on the hand and foot • Minor (thermal/heat) burns or scalds (superficial, or first-degree) • Bites or stings of insects and ticks • Venomous snakebite • Nosebleed • Frostbite and sunburn • Choking 4b. Describe common poisonous or hazardous plants; identify any that grow in your local area or campsite location. Tell how to treat for exposure to them. 4c. Tell what you can do while on a campout or other outdoor activity to prevent or reduce the occurrence of injuries or exposure listed in Tenderfoot requirements 4a and 4b. 4d. Assemble a personal first-aid kit to carry with you on future campouts and hikes. Tell how each item in the kit would be used.
5a. Explain the importance of the buddy system as it relates to your personal safety on outings and in your neighborhood. Use the buddy system while on a troop or patrol outing. TENDERFOOT Rank Requirements 9 Notes: The requirements for Scout, Tenderfoot, Second Class, and First Class ranks may be worked on simultaneously; however, these ranks must be earned in sequence. Alternative requirements for the Tenderfoot rank are available for Scouts with physical or mental disabilities if they meet the criteria listed in the Scouts BSA Requirements book. 5b. Describe what to do if you become lost on a hike or campout. 5c. Explain the rules of safe hiking, both on the highway and crosscountry, during the day and at night.
6a. Record your best in the following tests: • Pushups (Record the number done correctly in 60 seconds.) • Situps or curl-ups (Record the number done correctly in 60 seconds.) • Back-saver sit-and-reach (Record the distance stretched.) • 1-mile walk/run (Record the time.) 6b. Develop and describe a plan for improvement in each of the activities listed in Tenderfoot requirement 6a. Keep track of your activity for at least 30 days. 6c. Show improvement (of any degree) in each activity listed in Tenderfoot requirement 6a after practicing for 30 days. • Pushups (Record the number done correctly in 60 seconds.) • Situps or curl-ups (Record the number done correctly in 60 seconds.) • Back-saver sit-and-reach (Record the distance stretched.) • 1-mile walk/run (Record the time.)
7a. Demonstrate how to display, raise, lower, and fold the U.S. flag. 7b. Participate in a total of one hour of service in one or more service projects approved by your Scoutmaster. Explain how your service to others relates to the Scout slogan and Scout motto.
8. Describe the steps in Scouting’s Teaching EDGE method. Use the Teaching EDGE method to teach another person how to tie the square knot.
9. Demonstrate Scout spirit by living the Scout Oath and Scout Law. Tell how you have done your duty to God and how you have lived four different points of the Scout Law in your everyday life.
10. While working toward the Tenderfoot rank, and after completing Scout rank requirement 7, participate in a Scoutmaster conference.
11. Successfully complete your board of review for the Tenderfoot rank.
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SECOND
CLASS
Second Class Requirements:
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1a. Since joining Scouts BSA, participate in five separate troop/patrol activities, at least three of which must be held outdoors. Of the outdoor activities, at least two must include overnight camping. These activities do not include troop or patrol meetings. On campouts, spend the night in a tent that you pitch or other structure that you help erect, such as a lean-to, snow cave, or tepee. 1b. Explain the principles of Leave No Trace and tell how you practiced them on a campout or outing. This outing must be different from the one used for Tenderfoot requirement 1c. 1c. On one of these campouts, select a location for your patrol site and recommend it to your patrol leader, senior patrol leader, or troop guide. Explain what factors you should consider when choosing a patrol site and where to pitch a tent.
2a. Explain when it is appropriate to use a fire for cooking or other purposes and when it would not be appropriate to do so. 2b. Use the tools listed in Tenderfoot requirement 3d to prepare tinder, kindling, and fuel wood for a cooking fire. 2c. At an approved outdoor location and time, use the tinder, kindling, and fuel wood from Second Class requirement 2b to demonstrate how to build a fire. Unless prohibited by local fire restrictions, light the fire. After allowing the flames to burn safely for at least two minutes, safely extinguish the flames with minimal impact to the fire site. 2d. Explain when it is appropriate to use a lightweight stove and when it is appropriate to use a propane stove. Set up a lightweight stove or propane stove. Light the stove, unless prohibited by local fire restrictions. Describe the safety procedures for using these types of stoves. 2e. On one campout, plan and cook one hot breakfast or lunch, selecting foods from MyPlate or the current USDA nutritional model. Explain the importance of good nutrition. Demonstrate how to transport, store, and prepare the foods you selected. 2f. Demonstrate tying the sheet bend knot. Describe a situation in which you would use this knot. 2g. Demonstrate tying the bowline knot. Describe a situation in which you would use this knot.
3a. Demonstrate how a compass works and how to orient a map. Use a map to point out and tell the meaning of five map symbols. 3b. Using a compass and map together, take a 5-mile hike (or 10 miles by bike) approved by your adult leader and your parent or guardian. 3c. Describe some hazards or injuries that you might encounter on your hike and what you can do to help prevent them. SECOND CLASS Rank Requirements. If you use a wheelchair or crutches, or if it is difficult for you to get around, you may substitute “trip" for “hike” in requirement 3b and 3c.
3d. Demonstrate how to find directions during the day and at night without using a compass or an electronic device.
4. Identify or show evidence of at least 10 kinds of wild animals (such as birds, mammals, reptiles, fish, or mollusks) found in your local area or camping location. You may show evidence by tracks, signs, or photographs you have taken.
5a. Tell what precautions must be taken for a safe swim. 5b. Demonstrate your ability to pass the BSA beginner test: Jump feetfirst into water over your head in depth, level off and swim 25 feet on the surface, stop, turn sharply, resume swimming, then return to your starting place. 5c. Demonstrate water rescue methods by reaching with your arm or leg, by reaching with a suitable object, and by throwing lines and objects. 5d. Explain why swimming rescues should not be attempted when a reaching or throwing rescue is possible. Explain why and how a rescue swimmer should avoid contact with the victim.
6a. Demonstrate first aid for the following: • Object in the eye • Bite of a warm-blooded animal • Puncture wounds from a splinter, nail, and fishhook • Serious burns (partial thickness, or second-degree) • Heat exhaustion • Shock • Heatstroke, dehydration, hypothermia, and hyperventilation 6b. Show what to do for “hurry” cases of stopped breathing, stroke, severe bleeding, and ingested poisoning. 6c. Tell what you can do while on a campout or hike to prevent or reduce the occurrence of the injuries listed in Second Class requirements 6a and 6b. 6d. Explain what to do in case of accidents that require emergency response in the home and backcountry. Explain what constitutes an emergency and what information you will need to provide to a responder. 6e. Tell how you should respond if you come upon the scene of a vehicular accident.
7a. After completing Tenderfoot requirement 6c, be physically active at least 30 minutes each day for five days a week for four weeks. Keep track of your activities. Under certain exceptional conditions, where the climate keeps the outdoor water temperature below safe levels yearround, or where there are no suitably safe and accessible places (outdoors or indoors) within a reasonable traveling distance to swim at any time during the year, the council Scout executive and advancement committee may, on an individual Scout basis, authorize an alternative for requirements 5b and 5c. The local council may establish appropriate procedures for submitting and processing these types of requests. All the other requirements, none of which necessitate entry on the water or entry in a watercraft on the water, must be completed as written.
Share your challenges and successes in completing Second Class requirement 7a. Set a goal for continuing to include physical activity as part of your daily life and develop a plan for doing so.
7c. Participate in a school, community, or troop program on the dangers of using drugs, alcohol, and tobacco and other practices that could be harmful to your health. Discuss your participation in the program with your family, and explain the dangers of substance addictions. Report to your Scoutmaster or other adult leader in your troop about which parts of the Scout Oath and Scout Law relate to what you learned.
8a. Participate in a flag ceremony for your school, religious institution, chartered organization, community, or Scouting activity. 8b. Explain what respect is due the flag of the United States. 8c. With your parents or guardian, decide on an amount of money that you would like to earn, based on the cost of a specific item you would like to purchase. Develop a written plan to earn the amount agreed upon and follow that plan; it is acceptable to make changes to your plan along the way. Discuss any changes made to your original plan and whether you met your goal. 8d. At a minimum of three locations, compare the cost of the item for which you are saving to determine the best place to purchase it. After completing Second Class requirement 8c, decide if you will use the amount that you earned as originally intended, save all or part of it, or use it for another purpose. 8e. Participate in two hours of service through one or more service projects approved by your Scoutmaster. Tell how your service to others relates to the Scout Oath.
9a. Explain the three R’s of personal safety and protection. 9b. Describe bullying; tell what the appropriate response is to someone who is bullying you or another person.
10. Demonstrate Scout spirit by living the Scout Oath and Scout Law. Tell how you have done your duty to God and how you have lived four different points of the Scout Law (not to include those used for Tenderfoot requirement 9) in your everyday life.
11. While working toward the Second Class rank, and after completing Tenderfoot requirement 10, participate in a Scoutmaster conference.
12. Successfully complete your board of review for the Second Class rank.
Notes: The requirements for Scout, Tenderfoot, Second Class, and First Class ranks may be worked on simultaneously; however, these ranks must be earned in sequence. Alternative requirements for the Second Class rank are available for Scouts with physical or mental disabilities if they
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FIRST
CLASS
First Class Requirements:
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1a. Since joining Scouts BSA, participate in 10 separate troop/patrol activities, at least six of which must be held outdoors. Of the outdoor activities, at least three must include overnight camping. These activities do not include troop or patrol meetings. On campouts, spend the night in a tent that you pitch or other structure that you help erect, such as a lean-to, snow cave, or tepee. 1b. Explain each of the principles of Tread Lightly! and tell how you practiced them on a campout or outing. This outing must be different from the ones used for Tenderfoot requirement 1c and Second Class requirement 1b.
2a. Help plan a menu for one of the above campouts that includes at least one breakfast, one lunch, and one dinner, and that requires cooking at least two of the meals. Tell how the menu includes the foods from MyPlate or the current USDA nutritional model and how it meets nutritional needs for the planned activity or campout. 2b. Using the menu planned in First Class requirement 2a, make a list showing a budget and the food amounts needed to feed three or more youth. Secure the ingredients. 2c. Show which pans, utensils, and other gear will be needed to cook and serve these meals. 2d. Demonstrate the procedures to follow in the safe handling and storage of fresh meats, dairy products, eggs, vegetables, and other perishable food products. Show how to properly dispose of camp garbage, cans, plastic containers, and other rubbish. 2e. On one campout, serve as cook. Supervise your assistant(s) in using a stove or building a cooking fire. Prepare the breakfast, lunch, and dinner planned in First Class requirement 2a. Supervise the cleanup.
3a. Discuss when you should and should not use lashings. 3b. Demonstrate tying the timber hitch and clove hitch. 3c. Demonstrate tying the square, shear, and diagonal lashings by joining two or more poles or staves together. 3d. Use lashings to make a useful camp gadget or structure.
4a. Using a map and compass, complete an orienteering course that covers at least one mile and requires measuring the height and/ or width of designated items (tree, tower, canyon, ditch, etc.). 4b. Demonstrate how to use a handheld GPS unit, GPS app on a smartphone, or other electronic navigation system. Use GPS to find your current location, a destination of your choice, and the route you will take to get there. Follow that route to arrive at your destination. FIRST CLASS Rank Requirements 14.
5a. Identify or show evidence of at least 10 kinds of native plants found in your local area or campsite location. You may show evidence by identifying fallen leaves or fallen fruit that you find in the field, or as part of a collection you have made, or by photographs you have taken. 5b. Identify two ways to obtain a weather forecast for an upcoming activity. Explain why weather forecasts are important when planning for an event. 5c. Describe at least three natural indicators of impending hazardous weather, the potential dangerous events that might result from such weather conditions, and the appropriate actions to take. 5d. Describe extreme weather conditions you might encounter in the outdoors in your local geographic area. Discuss how you would determine ahead of time the potential risk of these types of weather dangers, alternative planning considerations to avoid such risks, and how you would prepare for and respond to those weather conditions.
6a. Successfully complete the BSA swimmer test.4,5 6b. Tell what precautions must be taken for a safe trip afloat. 6c. Identify the basic parts of a canoe, kayak, or other boat. Identify the parts of a paddle or an oar. 6d. Describe proper body positioning in a watercraft, depending on the type and size of the vessel. Explain the importance of proper body position in the boat. 6e. With a helper and a practice victim, show a line rescue both as tender and as rescuer. (The practice victim should be approximately 30 feet from shore in deep water.)5
7a. Demonstrate bandages for a sprained ankle and for injuries on the head, the upper arm, and the collarbone. 7b. By yourself and with a partner, show how to: • Transport a person from a smoke-filled room. • Transport for at least 25 yards a person with a sprained ankle. 7c. Tell the five most common signals of a heart attack. Explain the steps (procedures) in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). 7d. Tell what utility services exist in your home or meeting place. Describe potential hazards associated with these utilities and tell how to respond in emergency situations. 4 See the Swimming merit badge requirements for details about the BSA swimmer test. 5 Under certain exceptional conditions, where the climate keeps the outdoor water temperature below safe levels yearround, or where there are no suitably safe and accessible places (outdoors or indoors) within a reasonable traveling distance to swim at any time during the year, the council Scout executive and advancement committee may, on an individual Scout basis, authorize an alternative for requirements 6a and 6e. The local council may establish appropriate procedures for submitting and processing these types of requests. All the other requirements, none of which necessitate entry in the water or entry in a watercraft on the water, must be completed as written. 15 7e. Develop an emergency action plan for your home that includes what to do in case of fire, storm, power outage, and water outage. 7f. Explain how to obtain potable water in an emergency.
8a. After completing Second Class requirement 7a, be physically active at least 30 minutes each day for five days a week for four weeks. Keep track of your activities. 8b. Share your challenges and successes in completing First Class requirement 8a. Set a goal for continuing to include physical activity as part of your daily life.
9a. Visit and discuss with a selected individual approved by your leader (for example, an elected official, judge, attorney, civil servant, principal, or teacher) the constitutional rights and obligations of a U.S. citizen. 9b. Investigate an environmental issue affecting your community. Share what you learned about that issue with your patrol or troop. Tell what, if anything, could be done by you or your community to address the concern. 9c. On a Scouting or family outing, take note of the trash and garbage you produce. Before your next similar outing, decide how you can reduce, recycle, or repurpose what you take on that outing, and then put those plans into action. Compare your results. 9d. Participate in three hours of service through one or more service projects approved by your Scoutmaster. The project(s) must not be the same service project(s) used for Tenderfoot requirement 7b and Second Class requirement 8e. Explain how your service to others relates to the Scout Law.
10. Tell someone who is eligible to join Scouts BSA, or an inactive Scout, about your Scouting activities. Invite this person to an outing, activity, service project, or meeting. Provide information on how to join, or encourage the inactive Scout to become active. Share your efforts with your Scoutmaster or other adult leader.
11. Demonstrate Scout spirit by living the Scout Oath and Scout Law. Tell how you have done your duty to God and how you have lived four different points of the Scout Law (different from those points used for previous ranks) in your everyday life.
12. While working toward the First Class rank, and after completing Second Class requirement 11, participate in a Scoutmaster conference.
13. Successfully complete your board of review for the First Class rank.
Notes: The requirements for Scout, Tenderfoot, Second Class, and First Class ranks may be worked on simultaneously; however, these ranks must be earned in sequence. Alternative requirements for the First Class rank are available for Scouts with physical or mental disabilities if they meet the criteria listed in the Scouts BSA Requirements book.
STAR
Star Requirements:
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1. Be active in your troop for at least four months as a First Class Scout.
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2. As a First Class Scout, demonstrate Scout spirit by living the Scout Oath and Scout Law. Tell how you have done your duty to God and how you have lived the Scout Oath and Scout Law in your everyday life.
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3. Earn six merit badges, including any four from the required list for Eagle. You may choose any of the 17 merit badges on the required list for Eagle to fulfill this requirement. See Eagle rank requirement 3 for this list. Name of Merit Badge Date Earned (Eagle-required) _________________________________________ (Eagle-required) _________________________________________ (Eagle-required) _________________________________________ (Eagle-required) _________________________________________
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4. While a First Class Scout, participate in six hours of service through one or more service projects approved by your Scoutmaster. Notes: For Venturers working on Scouts BSA requirements, replace “troop” with “crew” and “Scoutmaster” with “Crew Advisor.” For Sea Scouts working on Scouts BSA requirements, replace “troop” with “ship” and “Scoutmaster” with “Skipper.” STAR Rank Requirements 18
5. While a First Class Scout, serve actively in your troop for four months in one or more of the following positions of responsibility (or carry out a Scoutmaster-approved leadership project to help the troop): Scout troop. Patrol leader, assistant senior patrol leader, senior patrol leader, troop guide, Order of the Arrow troop representative, den chief, scribe, librarian, historian, quartermaster, bugler, junior assistant Scoutmaster, chaplain aide, instructor, webmaster, or outdoor ethics guide.
6 Venturing crew. President, vice president, secretary, treasurer, den chief, historian, guide, quartermaster, chaplain aide, or outdoor ethics guide. Sea Scout ship. Boatswain, boatswain's mate, purser, yeoman, storekeeper, crew leader, media specialist, specialist, den chief, or chaplain aide. Lone Scout. Leadership responsibility in your school, religious organization, club, or elsewhere in your community. 6. With your parent or guardian, complete the exercises in the pamphlet How to Protect Your Children From Child Abuse: A Parent’s Guide and earn the Cyber Chip award for your grade.7
7. While a First Class Scout, participate in a Scoutmaster conference.
8. Successfully complete your board of review for the Star rank.8 6Assistant patrol leader is not an approved position of responsibility for the Star rank. 7 If your family does not have internet access at home AND you do not have ready internet access at school or another public place or via a mobile device, the Cyber Chip portion of this requirement may be waived by your Scoutmaster in consultation with your parent or guardian. 8If the board of review does not approve the Scout’s advancement, the decision may be appealed in accordance with Guide to Advancement topic 8.0.4.0.
LIFE
Life Requirements:
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1. Be active in your troop for at least six months as a Star Scout.
2. As a Star Scout, demonstrate Scout spirit by living the Scout Oath and Scout Law. Tell how you have done your duty to God and how you have lived the Scout Oath and Scout Law in your everyday life.
3. Earn five more merit badges (so that you have 11 in all), including any three additional badges from the required list for Eagle. You may choose any of the 17 merit badges on the required list for Eagle to fulfill this requirement. See Eagle rank requirement 3 for this list. Name of Merit Badge Date Earned (Eagle-required) _________________________________________ (Eagle-required) _________________________________________ (Eagle-required) _________________________________________
4. While a Star Scout, participate in six hours of service through one or more service projects approved by your Scoutmaster. At least three hours of this service must be conservation-related.
5. While a Star Scout, serve actively in your troop for six months in one or more of the following troop positions of responsibility (or carry out a Scoutmaster-approved leadership project to help the troop).
Scout troop. Patrol leader, assistant senior patrol leader, senior patrol leader, troop guide, Order of the Arrow troop representative, den chief, scribe, librarian, historian, quartermaster, bugler, junior assistant Scoutmaster, chaplain aide, instructor, webmaster, or outdoor ethics guide.9
Venturing crew. President, vice president, secretary, treasurer, den chief, historian, guide, quartermaster, chaplain aide, or outdoor ethics guide.
Sea Scout ship. Boatswain, boatswain's mate, purser, yeoman, storekeeper, crew leader, media specialist, specialist, den chief, or chaplain aide.
Lone Scout. Leadership responsibility in your school, religious organization, club, or elsewhere in your community. LIFE Rank Requirements 9Assistant patrol leader is not an approved position of responsibility for the Star, Life, or Eagle rank. Assistant patrol leader is not an approved position of responsibility for the Star, Life, or Eagle rank.
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6. While a Star Scout, use the Teaching EDGE method to teach another Scout (preferably younger than you) the skills from ONE of the following choices, so that the Scout is prepared to pass those requirements to their Scoutmaster’s satisfaction. a. Tenderfoot 4a and 4b (first aid) b. Second Class 2b, 2c, and 2d (cooking/tools) c. Second Class 3a and 3d (navigation) d. First Class 3a, 3b, 3c, and 3d (tools) e. First Class 4a and 4b (navigation) f. Second Class 6a and 6b (first aid) g. First Class 7a and 7b (first aid) h. Three requirements from one of the required Eagle merit badges, as approved by your Scoutmaster
7. While a Star Scout, participate in a Scoutmaster conference.
8. Successfully complete your board of review for the Life rank.10
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Notes: For Venturers working on Scouts BSA requirements, replace “troop” with “crew” and “Scoutmaster” with “crew Advisor.” For Sea Scouts working on Scouts BSA requirements, replace “troop” with “ship” and “Scoutmaster” with “Skipper.” 10If the board of review does not approve the Scout’s advancement, the decision may be appealed in accordance with Guide to Advancement topic 8.0.4.0.
EAGLE
Eagle Requirements:
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1. Be active in your troop for at least six months as a Life Scout.
2. As a Life Scout, demonstrate Scout Spirit by living the Scout Oath and Scout Law. Tell how you have done your duty to God, how you have lived the Scout Oath and Scout Law in your everyday life, and how your understanding of the Scout Oath and Scout Law will guide your life in the future. List on your Eagle Scout Rank Application the names of individuals who know you personally and would be willing to provide a recommendation on your behalf, including parents/guardians, religious (if not affiliated with an organized religion, then the parent or guardian provides this reference), educational, employer (if employed), and two other references.
3. Earn a total of 21 merit badges (10 more than required for the Life rank), including these 13 merit badges: (a) First Aid, (b) Citizenship in the Community, (c) Citizenship in the Nation, (d) Citizenship in the World, (e) Communication, (f) Cooking, (g) Personal Fitness, (h) Emergency Preparedness OR Lifesaving, (i) Environmental Science OR Sustainability, (j) Personal Management, (k) Swimming OR Hiking OR Cycling, (l) Camping, and (m) Family Life. You must choose only one of the merit badges listed in categories h, i, and k. Any additional merit badge(s) earned in those categories may be counted as one of your eight optional merit badges used to make your total of 21.
Name of Merit Badge / Date Earned
1. ___________________________________
2. ___________________________________
3. ___________________________________
4. ___________________________________
5. ___________________________________
6. ___________________________________
7. ___________________________________
8. ___________________________________
9. ___________________________________
10.___________________________________
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4. While a Life Scout, serve actively in your troop for six months in one or more of the following positions of responsibility11:
Scout troop. Patrol leader, assistant senior patrol leader, senior patrol leader, troop guide, Order of the Arrow troop representative, den chief, scribe, librarian, historian, quartermaster, junior assistant Scoutmaster, chaplain aide, instructor, webmaster, or outdoor ethics guide.
Venturing crew. President, vice president, secretary, treasurer, den chief, historian, guide, quartermaster, chaplain aide, or outdoor ethics guide.
Sea Scout ship. Boatswain, boatswain's mate, purser, yeoman, storekeeper, crew leader, media specialist, specialist, den chief, or chaplain aide.
Lone Scout. Leadership responsibility in your school, religious organization, club, or elsewhere in your community.
5. While a Life Scout, plan, develop, and give leadership to others in a service project helpful to any religious institution, any school, or your community. (The project must benefit an organization other than the Boy Scouts of America.) A project proposal must be approved by the organization benefiting from the effort, your Scoutmaster and unit committee, and the council or district before you start. You must use the Eagle Scout Service Project Workbook, BSA publication No. 512-927, in meeting this requirement. (To learn more about the Eagle Scout service project, see the Guide to Advancement, topics 9.0.2.0 through 9.0.2.16.)
6. While a Life Scout, participate in a Scoutmaster conference.
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11Assistant patrol leader and bugler are not approved positions of responsibility for the Eagle Scout rank. Likewise, a Scoutmaster-approved leadership project shall not be used in lieu of serving in a position of responsibility.
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In preparation for your board of review, prepare and attach to your Eagle Scout Rank Application a statement of your ambitions and life purpose and a listing of positions held in your religious institution, school, camp, community, or other organizations, during which you demonstrated leadership skills. Include honors and awards received during this service. 7.
Successfully complete your board of review for the Eagle Scout rank.12 (This requirement may be met after age 18, in accordance with Guide to Advancement topic 8.0.3.1.13).
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Notes: For Venturers working on Scouts BSA requirements, replace “troop” with “crew” and “Scoutmaster” with “crew Advisor.” For Sea Scouts working on Scouts BSA requirements, replace “troop” with “ship” and “Scoutmaster” with “Skipper.” 12
APPEALS AND EXTENSIONS
If a Scout believes all requirements for the Eagle Scout rank have been completed but a board of review is denied, the Scout may request a board of review under disputed circumstances in accordance with Guide to Advancement topic 8.0.3.2.
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If the board of review does not approve the Scout’s advancement, the decision may be appealed in accordance with Guide to Advancement topic 8.0.4.0.
A Scout who foresees that, due to no fault or choice of their own, it will not be possible to complete the Eagle Scout rank requirements before age 18 may apply for a limited time extension in accordance with Guide to Advancement topic 9.0.4.0. These are rarely granted and reserved only for work on Eagle. 13
AGE REQUIREMENT ELIGIBILITY
Merit badges, badges of rank, and Eagle Palms may be earned by a registered Scout or a qualified Venturer or Sea Scout. Scouts may earn these awards until their 18th birthday. Any Venturer or Sea Scout who has achieved the First Class rank as a Scout in a troop or as a Lone Scout may continue working up to their 18th birthday toward the Star, Life, and Eagle Scout ranks and Eagle Palms.
An Eagle Scout board of review may occur, without special approval, within three months after the 18th birthday. Local councils must preapprove those held three to six months afterward. To initiate approval, the candidate, the candidate’s parent or guardian, the unit leader, or a unit committee member attaches to the application a statement explaining the delay. Consult the Guide to Advancement, topic 8.0.3.1, in the case where a board of review is to be conducted more than six months after a candidate’s 18th birthday.
If you have a permanent physical or mental disability, or a disability expected to last more than two years or beyond age 18, you may become an Eagle Scout by qualifying for as many required merit badges as you can and qualifying for alternative merit badges for the rest. If you seek to become an Eagle Scout under this procedure, you must submit a special application to your local council service center. Your application must be approved by your council advancement committee before you can work on alternative merit badges.
A Scout, Venturer, or Sea Scout with a disability may also qualify to work toward rank advancement after reaching 18 years of age if the guidelines outlined in section 10 of the Guide to Advancement are met.
EAGLE ALTERNATIVE
Eagle Scout Rank Altrnative Requirements:
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The Eagle Scout rank may be achieved by a Scout or a qualified14 Venturer or Sea Scout who has a physical or mental disability by completing the Application for Alternative Eagle Scout Rank Merit Badges, No. 512-730, and by qualifying for alternative merit badges. This does not apply to individual requirements for merit badges. Merit badges are awarded only when all requirements are met as stated. See the Guide to Advancement, topic 10.2.2.3, for details.
The physical or mental disability must be of a permanent rather than of a temporary nature or a disability expected to last more than two years or beyond age 18. The application must include a written statement from a qualified health professional related to the nature of the disability. This person may be a physician, neurologist, psychiatrist, psychologist, etc., or, when appropriate, an educational administrator in special education.
Before applying, the Scout must earn as many of the Eagle-required merit badges as possible. However, where a permanent disability clearly precludes completing specific merit badges, a Scout who has earned at least First Class may apply for an alternative merit badge without waiting until all other Eagle-required merit badges are complete. Any alternatives must present the same challenge and learning level as those they replace, and must be completed prior to the 18th birthday unless the member is registered beyond the age of eligibility (reference Guide to Advancement, topic 10.1.0.1–10.1.0.2).
1. Obtain a clear and concise statement related to the nature of the disability from a qualified health professional.
2. The unit leader meets with the candidate and the Scout's parent or guardian to determine the alternative merit badges to replace those impeding the Scout's advancement.
3. The unit leader, parent or guardian, and the Scout (if possible) prepare supporting letters to accompany the application.
4. The district and council advancement committees, in turn, review the proposed alternative merit badges. They may choose to speak with the Scout, the Scout's parent or guardian, or unit leader. If the council advancement committee approves, then the candidate may start work on the approved alternative merit badges. 14In order to be an Eagle Scout candidate, a Venturer or Sea Scout must have achieved First Class rank as a Scout or as a Lone Scout.
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Note: In approving the application, the district and council advancement committees must utilize the expertise of a healthcare professional involved with youth who have disabilities. 5. Upon completion of the Eagle Scout rank requirements, using the alternative merit badges, the candidate appears before a board of review. The approved Application for Alternative Eagle Scout Rank Merit Badges must be attached to the Eagle Scout Rank Application. 6. Following a successful board of review, the council processes both applications and forwards them to the National Advancement Program Team. Local council action on alternative merit badges does not require national approval.
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EAGLE PALMS
Eagle Palms Requirements:​
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After successfully completing your Eagle Scout board of review on or after Aug. 1, 2017, and being validated as an Eagle Scout by the National Service Center, you will be entitled to receive an Eagle Palm for each additional five merit badges you completed before your Eagle board of review beyond those required for Eagle. In addition, all current Scouts who have completed their Eagle board of review and who had not passed their 18th birthday before Aug. 1, 2017, are entitled as well to receive Eagle Palms. For these Palms only, it will not be necessary for you to complete the requirements stated below.
After becoming an Eagle Scout and receiving the Eagle Palms you are entitled to, you may earn additional Palms by completing the following requirements:
1. Be active in the Boy Scouts of America for at least three months after becoming an Eagle Scout or after the last Palm was earned.15
2. Since earning the Eagle Scout rank or your last Eagle Palm, demonstrate Scout spirit by living the Scout Oath and Scout Law. Tell how you have done your duty to God and how you have lived the Scout Oath and Scout Law in your everyday life.
3. Continue to set a satisfactory example of accepting responsibility or demonstrating leadership ability.
4. Earn five additional merit badges beyond those required for Eagle or last Palm.16
5. While an Eagle Scout, participate in a Scoutmaster conference.
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You may wear only the proper combination of Palms for the number of merit badges you earned beyond the rank of Eagle. The Bronze Palm represents five merit badges, the Gold Palm 10, and the Silver Palm 15.
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Notes: For Venturers working on Scouts BSA requirements, replace “Scoutmaster” with “crew Advisor.” For Sea Scouts working on Scouts BSA requirements, replace “Scoutmaster” with “Skipper.” 15
Eagle Palms must be earned in sequence, and the three-month tenure requirement must be observed for each Palm. 16
Merit badges earned any time since joining Scouts BSA may be used to meet this requirement.
