What are the benefits of being a boy scout?

I was a Boy Scout and both my sons are Eagle Scouts. Both my sons have benefited from their scouting experience. Boy Scouts build strong virtues, survival skills, confidence, leadership and teamwork. If you can work your way up the ranks and get into leadership positions even better. Scout camps are excellent experiences also. One of my sons was even a teacher at a scout camp in North Georgia for 6 weeks over the summer. To get the most out of scouting it takes commitment. When people see scouting on a resume they will probably ask you about it, so if you quit after a short while, it will hurt you more than help you.

Hi Albert!

You asked a good question.

Whenever you consider doing something or participating in a group, such as Boy Scouts, it should be something that you are interested in fully investing of yourself. You should never, never do something only because you think it will look good on a resume or an application.

There are too many people superficially involved in organizations simply because of an application or a resume. They tend to be only involved on the surface and thus do not benefit themselves or the group and they tend to stick out like a sore thumb and this will show up when the leader is questioned by a future employer or school.

Boy Scouts does have some great benefits, only if you are willing and able to invest sufficient time and energy to take advantage of them.

Here is a link which you might find helpful - if you are seriously interested for the right reasons: (them you can honestly include them on a resume or application - otherwise, forget it)
http://www.scouting.org/

Let me know if and how this is of help. Keep me posted.

Albert, Ken is right on when he says you should never do something just because it will look good on a resume. If you are not truly committed to it, it comes across as almost lying because there are a lot of assumptions that go along with different organizations. The Boy Scout oath states the characteristics that everyone expects to see when they hear you are a Boy Scout.

That being said, I was a Boy Scout for 2 years in Middle School and I had a great time. I enjoyed the outdoors and camping trips and learned a lot about nature and actually seeing the world around me. I had to leave when my troop disbanded and there was not another one in the area. I really missed that experience so when my Son was old enough we got him involved with Tiger Cubs and helped him all the way to Eagle. He spent 3 summers at the Philmont BS Camp in New Mexico where he was a camper one year and loved it so much he went back as a councilor the next two. The experience taught him a lot about responsibility and built his self confidence to the point he runs his own business today. Boy Scouts offers a lot of unseen benefits as it builds character and in my opinion is well worth the effort.

One word of caution though, there are many troops out there. Visit some of them before deciding on one. Some are more active than others and you need to be able to get along with the scouts themselves so find one that you are comfortable in. You will not be as happy in a troop of scouts who are there just to have something to put on their resume unless you have the drive to make it better.

To date, Scouting is looked well on by the business community as well as the Educational system. There are also scholarships available at the Eagle level for those who are committed and have the drive.

Personally I hope you decide to take advantage of the experience and get involved. Good luck in whatever you decide.

I could write a long-winded response to all the great benefits of scouting. It was a rewarding time for me and gave me an excellent base knowledge in many areas that ended up making school and college and hobbies much easier, not to mention making friends. To get right to your specific question as it relates to college I will give you an example. My best friend applied to a med school program where he was guaranteed admission right out of high school before even going to college and did not even need to take the MCATs (med school test) solely because out of the 105 male applicants he was the only Eagle Scout. On another note as an employer I've never been disappointed when hiring an ex scout and give them preference during selection.

There's an Eagle Scout standing next to me as I read this... whatever the reason may be, becoming an Eagle Scout teaches you life skills that will help along the way. so yes, do it :)