Weight of Being an Eagle Scout

C

Cr0ssFir3

5-Year Member
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Nov 28, 2012
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Hey all,

As a Candidate for the class of 2017 I'm very glad to say that I am a Eagle Scout. My service project involved building a community garden for our community's needy.

Question, what is everyone's idea of the weight of an Eagle Scout on a USNA application?

Thanks,
John
 
It definitely helps with strengthening your application, but keep in mind that the Service Academies are extremely popular with many Eagle Scouts and being an Eagle Scout alone will not guarantee a strong application. When learning more about the USCGA admissions process, I was told that being an Eagle is great, but don't write all your essays about Boy Scouts because it will make it seem like that is the only EC that you do.

Based off of this 2010 data, 25 percent of USNA midshipmen were involved in Scouting as youth and 11 percent are Eagle Scouts.

http://www.scouting.org/About/FactSheets/ScoutingFacts.aspx
 
When I had one of my senatorial interviews the committee chairman said the SA's and USNA in particular were popular with eagles. With regard to mentioning it in the essay, I talked about my project because it involved veterans and a member of USNA '12 I told about it said I should make sure to put it in the essay. Don't know if it will make a difference or not, but hopefully it will for the better.
 
Eagle

The SA's and the military in general love Eagle Scouts. It shows you're a leader that you can take on a challenge and finish something. It is a very small club. Keep in mind that USNA may be the largest collection of Eagle Scouts in the country. When our DS visited the battalion where he is now enrolled he mentioned to a cadet his project, the guy looked at him and said, "we're ALL Eagle Scouts, what else ya got?" Don't put all you're eggs in the BSA basket.
 
It's a plus. But, as others have said, it's not such a huge plus that will overcome an otherwise average package.
 
Show me a resume with Eagle on it and nothing else and he's not an Eagle, regardless what BSA/NESA says. I have never met an Eagle Scout that became an Eagle Scout when they passed their Eagle Board. They were all Eagles before they walked into the room. Sr Patrol Leaders, OA, sport team captain, band section leader, volunteer ad hoc at numerous charity events plus an established leader for at least one charity, they have paid employment, etc. For SA application Eagles you might even toss in some things like volunteer firefighter, EMT, CAP, or hours volunteered tuitoring or at a hospital in the hundreds of hours (doing the minimum hours to meet your NHS or Key Club membership requirement won't look good on a resume), etc.

Yes, SAs are very impressed with Eagles. Somewhere on the USNA website it says the #1 admission to graduation factor for midshipmen isn't HS grades, SAT, prior enlisted, military affiliation, geography, or any other demographic they have found. Eagle Scout is #1. Heard from a Col. at West Point the exact same statistic. The places are swimming with Eagle Scouts. "Paper Eagles" don't cut it.
 
The various times this has been discussed in the past, the general consensus was that from an application standpoint, you get as many 'points' toward your WCS from being a sports team captain as an Eagle Scout.
 
And do not forget that the USNA has an Eagle Scout club. Membership has it's privileges!
 
bpu said:
Show me a resume with Eagle on it and nothing else and he's not an Eagle, regardless what BSA/NESA says. I have never met an Eagle Scout that became an Eagle Scout when they passed their Eagle Board. They were all Eagles before they walked into the room. Sr Patrol Leaders, OA, sport team captain, band section leader, volunteer ad hoc at numerous charity events plus an established leader for at least one charity, they have paid employment, etc. For SA application Eagles you might even toss in some things like volunteer firefighter, EMT, CAP, or hours volunteered tuitoring or at a hospital in the hundreds of hours (doing the minimum hours to meet your NHS or Key Club membership requirement won't look good on a resume), etc.

Yes, SAs are very impressed with Eagles. Somewhere on the USNA website it says the #1 admission to graduation factor for midshipmen isn't HS grades, SAT, prior enlisted, military affiliation, geography, or any other demographic they have found. Eagle Scout is #1. Heard from a Col. at West Point the exact same statistic. The places are swimming with Eagle Scouts. "Paper Eagles" don't cut it.
Click to expand...

Yes, as an Eagle Scout and active leader in my council, I have seen many people earn the Eagle rank who are not exceptional leaders. Most are, but some can get through relatively easily. If you have an extensive leadership background in addition to being an Eagle scout, you have proven yourself to be an effective leader beyond just Boy Scouts. It has been proven through research that Eagle scouts are more involved and active citizens than non-Eagles.
 
Usually those who do not have it, will dismiss it.

THE FIRST QUESTION THAT WAS ASKED OF MY SON BY OUR SENATOR AND CONGRESSMAN WAS: "Are you an Eagle Scout"
 
Yes, in the case of a nomination, it probably is a great thing to have on your resume and probably will almost guarantee a nomination, but in the more difficult USNA admissions process, solely being an Eagle does not sufficiently represent how you are a well-rounded student. Being an Eagle certainly represents your leadership potential and probable success as a military officer, but they are looking for more involvement than just that. There are fewer Eagle scouts in the nomination process than there are in the USNA appointment process, therefore it is valued more in the nomination process.
 
"Being an Eagle certainly represents your leadership potential and probable success as a military officer, but they are looking for more involvement than just that."

Son, think about what you just said....What do you think that these schools produce?...."Military Leaders"
 
Beaz said:
Usually those who do not have it, will dismiss it.

THE FIRST QUESTION THAT WAS ASKED OF MY SON BY OUR SENATOR AND CONGRESSMAN WAS: "Are you an Eagle Scout"
Click to expand...

No need morphing into defensiveness about Eagle Scout's value in the scholastic qualifying process. The question has been fairly posed and it seems, fairly answered. USNA values it, perhaps no more nor less than some other significant leadership opportunities. Perhaps not as much as in generations past when Scouting was a far more pervasive EC for boys and girls than it is in today's world.

Many Eagles are both diligent in their commitment to scouting and potentially outstanding leadership candidates for important, significant life roles. Many are not nearly so apparently so. Some highly committed, well led troops make a commitment to making Eagle Scouts. Having watched several of these and the outcomes, it seems there are any number of Eagle Scouts "produced" who could not lead a fish in water.

What is the correlation of leadership potential and Eagle Scout ranking?

Who knows.

Who cares? Well, USNA for starters. And certainly the Eagle scout, troop leaders, and proud parents who've pushed and/or applauded that accomplishment. And as noted, some nominators.

So, let's applaud those who bring this EC to their candidacy. Whether or not it exposes and/or correlates to leadership potential and fulfillment, it certainly must assure diligence, commitment to task, ability to master multiple and diverse tasks, meaningful energy and fitness, and loyalty to one's team. And no need to either denigrate those who've achieved this worthy calling nor defend its merit to those who might.

Seems to me undeniable that the minor goals essential to reaching this major goal add up to a highly significant achievement. Congrats to those who do.:thumb:
 
What about the situation where the applicant has demonstrated leadership in other ways, is a Life Scout but will not become an Eagle until after the March 1 deadline, if at all? He will turn 18 in July.

My son has been a captain of his cross country team and is expected to be a captain of his track team in the spring. He has received awards both from his teammates and his coaches (awarded to the senior who best demonstrates leadership, sportsmanship, and ….). His teachers have commented on his leadership in class in their letters of reference for his college applications and his nomination packages.

For the last two years he has been a Boy Scout camp counselor where he has taught as sequence of four merit badges to over 75 scouts (more than most adults in our council), including planning the courses, creating the demonstrations, etc. While his cohorts were working on their Eagle projects, he was working 14 hour days for the full summer at camp. OA Brotherhood, Camp Fire Ranger (full fireman’s gear and safety equipment when extinguishing the camp wide ceremonies.

During the school year, it is varsity sports for each season and AP course homework which fills the school week and weekends + NHS activities (not an officer). This keeps him from having time to move forward on the Eagle project until late spring.

He has received a nomination from one of his Senators based on this status (not yet an Eagle).

Will lack of Eagle be a detriment for the whole candidate score in this situation?
 
No. At the risk of using double (or triple) negatives . . .

It is not a negative if one has not achieved Eagle Scout just as it is not a negative if one is not named team captain or club president. Achieving those things is a positive . . . there are many, many positives that applicants can achieve.
 
Not being an Eagle yet would not hurt your application at all. It may actually help it. Being a life scout and working on your project still shows a great amount of leadership and determination. Essentially, you're almost done. In order to convey the message that you (or your son, in this case) are currently working on earning your Eagle, I would maybe suggest listing "Eagle Scout Candidate" in your application after listing "Life Scout".

Congratulations on making it this far. Stick with it and work hard to finish the requirements. He's almost there!
 
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