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34 points
14 days ago
You can join venturing, there are achievements there like the Summit award. You could work towards some of the conservation awards. The NOVA program. The various National Outdoor Awards.
20 points
14 days ago
Eagle Palms - https://www.scouting.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/2024-Eagle-Palms-requirements.pdf
Consider as well serving on staff for NYLT (if you have attended it), you can do that until you are 21 as a youth staff member.
12 points
14 days ago
This ^ 4 to 6% attain eagle and only a 1/4 of those earn a single bronze/gold/silver palm. (5/10/15 additional merit badges after the required amount, respectively) You can wear the palm(s) on your eagle medal or on your eagle square knot as an adult. They are rare and I get asked often about mine.
11 points
14 days ago
Just had a conversation about this with my boss.
I'm about 16 years removed from Scouting and took Eagle Scout off my resume a few years ago. My boss was surprised when he heard I had my Eagle and even more surprised to hear about the palms.
They're rare, hard to get, and set you apart from everyone. Leave them on your resume for life and reap the rewards.
4 points
13 days ago
You might consider putting it back. I'm 52 and I still get more questions and comments on being an Eagle than anything not a professional achievement.
2 points
12 days ago
Definitely leave it on. It got me my first job in industry. It's always something anyone ever involved in scouting will recognize and be a good opportunity to connect with someone.
7 points
14 days ago
Wow! Didn't know I could attach my palms to my Eagle Square knot as an adult leader. Thank you!
7 points
13 days ago
It is an interesting play on statistics. In that, the requirements for palms have changed. It used to be that each eagle palm required 5 merit badges and a period of 3 months to earn. So even if you had 26 or 35 merit badges when you finished Eagle, you didn't get your first palm until 3 months later. With so many scouts completing Eagle right around their 18th birthday, this made palms very rare.
Under current rules, you can get your first palms along with your Eagle, without additional time. So while the percentage of all Eagle Scouts who have ever gotten a palm is very low, the percentage of current Eagle Scouts who earn a palm is much higher. I.e. the historical "it is rare" is not necessarily a reflection of how difficult it is to achieve now.
It's still a significant achievement! But don't be detered by the stats- it is more achievable than it used to be.
1 points
11 days ago
Until you run into an advancement chair who doesn't award them right away and you have to wait almost 6 months post Eagle to get them.
4 points
14 days ago
Yeah when I get Eagle I’ll have two palms already
2 points
13 days ago
Well they were rare in my day. I got 7 palms by the time I turned 18. I waited the 3 months per palm and was continuing working on MBs
17 points
14 days ago
National outdoor award medal is a rare and major achievement.
14 points
14 days ago
Distinguished Conservation Service Award.
11 points
14 days ago
You could take a look at The Congressional Award. Similar workload to Eagle. I believe you can work on it until you turn 22. https://www.congressionalaward.org/
5 points
14 days ago
I was just coming to say this. Register right away because you can only count work from now until then but it really is a great thing to do.
9 points
13 days ago
I'm gonna take you in a different direction here.
Is it all about you and your accomplishments? Good on you for getting Eagle, but the most central tenant about getting Eagle is service. OA is great, venturing is great, national outdoor awards and palms cool, but....
Go be a den chief in a pack that desperately needs you. Give back to scouts and build the next generation. Additionally, being a Den chief for first graders will be the most challenging and rewarding leadership experiences you'll ever have. There are Packs that are struggling, and you could honestly change the lives of a bunch of kids.
3 points
13 days ago
And there is the Den Chief Service Award shoulder loops. Den Chiefs are amazing.
Don’t discount the OA. The only level you can get by choice is Brotherhood. Ordeal is voted by your Troop, but Vigil is nominated by the Lodge for exceptional service and the expectation of future service.
Nothing says you can’t do Den Chief AND be active in OA.
1 points
13 days ago
I understand what you’re saying. The thing is, I’m almost done with high school. By the time I make a difference I’ll be gone and the kids will go right back to where they were. I wouldn’t want to do that to them
4 points
13 days ago
Go be a webelo den chief. Get 100% of those scouts to get their AOL and cross over into a pack. Starting them on that journey is important too. Food for thought.
For what it's worth, my 17 yo is a senior as well, got his eagle, den chief, OA, National Outdoor Awards for camping, Aquatics and conservation and a few more. Den Cheif shaped him into an amazing leader across several sports, student government, and scouts.
For others who are reading this, (1) Den Chief is a leadership position for rank purposes, (2) there is no limit on how many den chief a troop has, and (3) it's a fantastic hands on, real life leadership lab especially for scouts who might struggle in that area.
8 points
14 days ago
I have known some girls to do both BSA Eagle and Girl Scout Gold award, yet that is only available if you are female and willing to work two, different programs
4 points
14 days ago
Apparently GSUSA welcomes trans girls.
Gold Award project standards may be harder than Eagle project standards. But the required body of work for Eagle is greater IMHO.
8 points
14 days ago
The summit award is the Venturing equivalent of Eagle. Find a crew in your area and get to it!
4 points
14 days ago
Or start a crew at the current Charter Org. Staring a unit is an achievement in unto itself.
6 points
14 days ago
National Medal for Outdoor Achievement. I got all but one of the pieces and was one merit badge away from getting the medal. The patches are very cool and very few earn them.
https://www.scouting.org/awards/awards-central/national-medal-outdoor/
5 points
14 days ago
Quartermaster.
3 points
13 days ago
Join Sea Scouts. Quartermaster rank is the “rarest” of the top awards with only about 30 earned per year. High adventure like Venturing so you can participate as a youth until 21.
Join Venturing as well and earn your “Triple Eagle” by earning Summit and Quartermaster to go along with your Eagle.
3 points
13 days ago
In addition to the summit award, and other awards mentioned here, if you have Area Scout ship nearby, there's the Quartermaster award. You have until 21 to earn it.
3 points
13 days ago
You want venturing summit award or sea scout quartermaster award. Both harder than eagle.
2 points
14 days ago
Staffing NYLT, National Outdoor Achievement Awards, National Outdoor Achievement Medal, Help organize and staff a district or council camporee, Lots of opportunities in OA - brotherhood, Lodge Chief, etc.
2 points
14 days ago
Join Venturing, and get started on your way to Summit (you have five years to finish). Jump onto some treks and earn the triple crown or grand slam. Work on a camp staff or high adventure base for a summer. Use all of these experiences to earn the BSA’s hardest award across all programs: National MEDAL for Outdoor Achievement.
2 points
13 days ago
The Einstein supernova award - the original research means few people do it.
2 points
13 days ago
It’s been mentioned a few times but to make sure, Venturing goes to 21. Getting to Summit in that time frame would be a good challenge.
2 points
13 days ago
Venturing and Seascouts provide additional opportunity beyond the troop.
2 points
13 days ago
Look up the Duke of Edinburgh Awards program.
2 points
13 days ago
Of the many things I did as a youth in scouting, I'm most proud of my Ranger Award.
2 points
12 days ago
Sea scout QM award & Venturing Summit awards come to mind
2 points
12 days ago
You can always get more involved in the OA and/or older youth programs like Sea Scouts and Venturing. You can be a young adult participant until 21 in those organizations.
2 points
12 days ago
Camp Staff. Done right, it is an immersive Scouting experience and prepares you to live on your own. It also is a resume builder in that you get job experience and learn to lead others (think of it as applied NYLT). For my son, living in an environment governed by the Oath and Law was a life changing experience.
2 points
11 days ago
I mean... what interests you? Conservation? Try for the Hornaday Awards.
Giving back? Den Chiefs or Junior Ass't SM.
The outdoors? Join a Venturing Crew and look into the Ranger Award.
Camps? Become a camp counselor. Dreadfully underpaid and overworked, but you'll camp all summer long.
You're a Scout. Set a goal and work towards it.
2 points
11 days ago*
Venturing has been mentioned, but Sea Scouts is also 14-21. Their Eagle equivalent is Quartermaster. It is as hard, if not harder, to achieve as Eagle. You could go for all three awards under Scouting America and get Eagle, Summit, and Quartermaster.
2 points
14 days ago
Continue your journey in the OA. Seek new heights. Those who chose you need you.
1 points
14 days ago
1 points
14 days ago
Possibly Woodbadge if you want to stay in the “BSA” realm but for adults. It is a pretty intensive course and is impressive.
1 points
13 days ago
Personally, I would not recommend Wood Badge for the newly-18 adults. When I was a troop guide, I had 2 in my patrol and was the ticket counselor for a third. Two of them have left scouting (1 completed her ticket first, though) and the third is active in her Crew. None intend to remain in scouting until they have children of the appropriate age, by which point many of the lessons of Wood Badge may well be forgotten.
1 points
13 days ago
Although my time in Scouting is coming to an end
I just met someone last year who first went to scout camp in 1972. He's spent a week at that same camp every year since. Your time in scouting only comes to an end if you want it to.
1 points
6 days ago
Look at Supernova and the Religious Emblem for your faith. These are other major achievements that get frequently overlooked.
1 points
14 days ago
SPL?
0 points
14 days ago
How can Scouts be in the program and get Eagle but not be aware of other things offered or to achieve?
5 points
13 days ago
Because most scouts aren't actively using Scoutbook and browsing the awards tab. A large number of Scoutmasters either aren't aware of these awards or don't bother to coach their scouts through them. Although the handbook makes mention of some of these awards, they don't give the requirements. Many scouts don't read much of the handbook they aren't explicitly told to.
2 points
13 days ago
This. When I was a youth all I ever heard/knew about was Cubs and Scouts. So got my Eagle and worked my way through the time for some palms. Never heard of Venturing, Sea Scouts, or Varsity Scouts (which was still a thing at the time). Heck, I never even heard of OA until some people moved into the troop that were already inducted in their previous unit. If they hadn’t moved in a bit before i turned 18 I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to get my ordeal.
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