Step-by-Step: How to Earn Ranks

1. Scouts should participate in activities that give them the opportunity to complete the necessary requirements for their next rank. For ranks up to First Class, they should have a Scoutmaster or Assistant Scoutmaster sign off on these accomplishments as soon as they complete them.

2. Once the Scout believes that all of the requirements have been met, he/she needs to take their book to the Advancement Chair to make sure that the advancement management system is up-to-date. The Advancement Chair will provide the Scout with a printed progress report that is their ticket to request a Scoutmaster conference.

3. The Scout takes that progress report to the Scoutmaster and requests a Scoutmaster Conference. These are often completed at the same meeting.

4. After completing the Scoutmaster Conference, the Scout needs to take their signed book back to the Advancement Chair who will update the system and organize a Board of Review.

5. The Board of Review is conducted with the Scout. See full information about these meetings here.

6. After the Board of Review, the Scout takes his/her book to the Advancement Chair one more time to finalize the official record.

7. The Scout is immediately credited with earning the rank. The badge itself will be presented at the next Court of Honor. (This distinction can be important if opportunities or activities are limited to Scouts who have earned a particular rank. For instance, only Scouts who have earned First Class can bring their own tents on campouts.)

Step-by-Step: How to Earn Merit Badges

For work done at summer/winter camp or a merit badge fair

1. 1. A camp or merit badge fair is organized and announced. 

2. Scouts and their families determine whether or not to attend the camp or merit badge fair. If the Scout can go, part of the registration process involves signing up for the specific courses the Scout is interested in taking. (Note: If you are a new Scout at summer camp, you will likely participate in a program focused on getting to First Class. In this case your merit badge choices are very limited.) Scoutmaster pre-approval is not required for Council, District, or Houston Museum of Natural Science merit badge classes.

3. Scouts should go to all the class sessions, read the course booklet*, do the work, and earn the badge.

4. The camp or fair organizers will send an official report to the Troop itemizing which requirements were completed by each participating Scout. The Advancement Chair then records the information into the advancement management system.

5. The Troop will share the information provided by the camp or fair with each Scout. Scouts should review the information to make sure that it is correct. If not, Scouts should bring the error to the attention of the Advancement Chair as soon as possible. Scouts do not need to submit anything to the Advancement Chair, unless they identify an error in the report.

6. If complete, the merit badge will be awarded at the next Court of Honor. The Scout should also note completed merit badges in the requirements section for the appropriate rank in the back of the Scout Handbook.

7. If incomplete, a “partial” will be recorded in the Troop’s advancement management system that itemizes which requirements have been completed. It is up to the Scout to complete the requirements to earn the badge.

For work done in a Troop-organized course

1. Troop leadership determines that several Scouts need a particular badge. The Troop makes arrangements to have a counselor conduct a course during Troop meetings and announces the availability of that course to anyone interested in taking it.

2. The Scout needs to get a signed “Blue Card” from the Scoutmaster. This card will identify which badge, the name of the counselor, and give permission for the Scout to engage with the counselor for the course.

3. The Scout must provide the signed Blue Card to the counselor at the start of the course.

4. Scouts should go to all the class sessions, read the course booklet*, do the work, and earn the badge.

5. At the end of the course, the counselor must sign the Blue Card and indicate whether it is complete or a partial. If a partial, they must identify which requirements were completed. The signed Blue Card is given back to the Scout.

6. The Scout provides the signed Blue Card to the Advancement Chair, who then records the information into the advancement management system.

7. If complete, the merit badge will be awarded at the next Court of Honor. The Scout should also note completed merit badges in the requirements section for the appropriate rank in the back of the Scout Handbook.

8. If incomplete, a “partial” will be recorded in the Troop’s advancement management system that itemizes which requirements have been completed. It is up to the Scout to complete the requirements to earn the badge.

For Scout-initiated work (done one-on-one with a counselor, at a museum, a school, or elsewhere)

1. The Scout finds someone who can be a counselor for a badge they are interested in. (All merit badge counselors must be approved by the district or council.) There are courses offered in public places, such as museums and parks, or a course may be organized on an individual basis. If the Troop does not have a counselor, the Sam Houston Area Council can often assist. No Scout should use the same counselor for more than five merit badges. In Scoutbook a leader can help find a name for you when and 

2. The Scout needs to get a signed “Blue Card” from the Scoutmaster. This card will identify which badge, the name of the counselor, and give permission for the Scout to engage with the counselor for the course.

3. The Scout must provide the signed Blue Card to the counselor at the start of the course.

4. The Scout should go to all the class sessions, read the course booklet*, do the work, and earn the badge.

5. At the end of the course, the counselor must sign the Blue Card and indicate whether it is complete or a partial. If a partial, they must identify which requirements were completed. The signed Blue Card is given back to the Scout.

6. The Scout provides the signed Blue Card to the Advancement Chair, who then records the information into the advancement management system.

7. If complete, the merit badge will be awarded at the next Court of Honor. The Scout should also note completed merit badges in the requirements section for the appropriate rank in the back of the Scout Handbook.

8. If incomplete, a “partial” will be recorded in the Troop’s advancement management system that itemizes which requirements have been completed. It is up to the Scout to complete the requirements to earn the badge.

* The Troop maintains a library of merit badge pamphlets. Pamphlets are also available from a Scout Shop, and online at the ScoutStuff website.

Step-by-Step: How to Earn Merit Badges

“Service projects required for Second Class, Star, and Life ranks may be conducted individually or through participation in patrol or troop efforts. They also may be approved for those assisting on Eagle Scout service projects.An approval is important because it calls on a boy to think about what might be accepted, and to be prepared to discuss it. It is up to the unit to determine how this is done. In many troops, it is the Scoutmaster’s prerogative. Service project work for Second Class, Star, and Life clearly call for participation only. Planning, development, or leadership is not to be required.” - from the Guide to Advancement 2015

A Video on Quick Entry for Merit Badge Counselors

Examples of opportunities to earn service hours include assisting with another Scout’s Eagle project, helping at a non-profit organization, helping at a church or synagogue, or doing service hours at school.

1. The Scout finds out about an opportunity to do service hours. This can be a project organized by others or a project the Scout initiates on his/her own.

2. The Scout proposes the work project to the Scoutmaster who must approve it prior to the Scout doing the work.

3. The Scout should go to the work sessions, work hard, and earn the hours.

4. The organizer, or someone in a position of responsibility at the organization, must provide documentation of the work completed. This should minimally include the following information: the name of the Scout, location the work was done, the date the work was done, what was done, and the total number of hours worked.

5. The Scout should present this documentation to the Advancement Chair, who will record the information into the advancement management system.

6. The Scout should also keep a record of these activities in the Service Hours section at the back of the Scout Handbook.

7. Special note for Eagle Scout projects: Eagle Scout candidates must provide the Advancement Chair with an Eagle Scout Project Service Log documenting volunteer hours of all participants on their project before proceeding to their Scoutmaster Conference.

Step by Step: How to Earn Nights Camped

Tenderfoot rank requirement 2: “Spend at least one night on a patrol or troop campout. Sleep in a tent you have helped pitch.”

Second Class rank requirement 3a: “Since joining, have participated in five separate troop/patrol activities (other than troop/patrol meeting), two of which included camping overnight.”

First Class rank requirement 3: “Since joining, have participated in 10 separate troop/patrol activities (other than troop/patrol meetings), three of which included camping overnight. Demonstrate the principles of Leave No Trace on these outings.”

1. The Troop offers camping trips nearly every month of the year. These opportunities are announced at Troop meetings and elsewhere. A parent or guardian of a Scout who wants to participate in a camping trip should register the Scout using the procedure described in the event announcement/invitation.

2. The Scout must go on the camping trip. The Person-In-Charge of the trip will record who participates and the number of nights they camped.

3. Periodically, the Camping Chair will provide a report to the Advancement Chair indicated who has attended which campouts. The Advancement Chair will record the information into the advancement management system.

4. The Scout should also keep a record in the Service Hours section at the back of the Scout Handbook.

Step by Step: How to Earn a “Position of Responsibility”

To earn the ranks of Star, Life, and Eagle, a has to serve in a position of responsibility for six months (four months for Star rank). Not every position of responsibility applies. Assistant patrol leader, for example, is not considered a position of responsibility in this sense. But senior patrol leader is. The following positions will count for advancement:

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, troop webmaster, or Leave No Trace trainer. Note that bugler is not considered a position of responsibility for Eagle.

Depending on the position, the Scout is either elected or selected for the role. The Scout should make sure the Advancement Chair is aware of the position, when it was started and when it was finished.

During Scoutmaster Conferences for Star, Life, and Eagle, the Scout will need to provide the Scoutmaster with a written summary of work completed in that position.

IMPORTANT NOTES

• Troop 11 uses SCOUTBOOK software to track Scout advancements. Scouts and parents are able to monitor and check on their progress reports at any time.  Here is a help guide.

• There are a number of administrative behind-the-scenes steps that must be taken after a Scout submits everything to the Advancement Chair. In order to provide the necessary time to complete these steps, no Scoutmaster conferences or Boards of Review will be conducted at the Troop meeting immediately before a Court of Honor. This means that the deadline to submit advancement requests is two weeks prior to a Court of Honor.

People Involved with Advancement

• The Scout - is the most important person involved. It is their Scout career and, for the most part, they must take responsibility for moving it forward.

• The Scoutmaster - has an approval responsibility in some, but not all, cases. See below for specifics. The Scoutmaster also conducts Scoutmaster Conferences — the next-to-last requirement for any Scout to earn a rank. These one-on-one meetings are an opportunity for a conversation about how things are going and to make a plan for what to do next.

• The Scoutmaster and Assistant Scoutmasters - have the authority to sign-off on completed requirements. It is important for Scouts to have their books signed off as soon as they complete a requirement by the adult who witnessed them doing it. Generally speaking, “I did that two months ago at the campout” is insufficient evidence for a signoff. Likewise, “Mr. _____ saw me do this but I didn’t have my book with me then. Can you sign it now?” will not usually work either. Note to anyone signing off on requirements: please write legibly and include the month, date, and year.

• The Advancement Chairs - are the keepers of the official record of the Scout’s accomplishments. They are critical to the process because if they do not receive official documentation of completed requirements, it is as if it never happened and a badge cannot be awarded. Scouts need to talk with the Advancement Chairs on the following occasions:

• When they have completed all of the requirements for the next rank, but before they have a Scoutmaster conference. This ensures that they have actually completed all the requirements.

• When they have completed a Scoutmaster conference so that a Board of Review can be scheduled.

• When it has been a while since they last checked in with the Advancement Chairs. This ensures that accomplishments are recorded in case the Scout’s Handbook gets lost. It’s also an opportunity for the Scouts to find out what requirements they still need to complete in order to finish up a rank or badge.

• Merit Badge Counselors - are the teachers who lead merit badge courses. They can be found at summer/winter camps, merit badge fairs, and among the adults connected to the Troop. They must be registered with the BSA, but they do not need to be Scoutmasters or Assistant Scoutmasters.

• Boards of Review - are panels of three adults who meet with a Scout after all requirements for a new rank have been met and the Scoutmaster has completed the Scoutmaster Conference with the Scout. This is an opportunity for the adults to get to know the Scout better, get his/her feedback about how things are going in the Troop, and to learn what the Scout did since the last Board of Review. It is not a test or an opportunity to independently confirm that a Scout has actually done the work to earn the rank.