Eagle Scout on Your Resume
The Eagle Scout is the highest rank or achievement attainable in the Boy Scouts of America.
Since the Boy Scouts began in 1911, a mere 4% of all Scouts have earned the designation of Eagle Scout.
This achievement and accomplishment is noteworthy and a difficult one to attain.
Referencing your Eagle Scout on your resume is not only recommended, it is actually encouraged.
When writing your resume, you will want to list a number of skills, achievements, and accomplishments.
As your resume is meant to be a reflection of your accomplishments, you should list any that are out of the ordinary and difficult to attain.
With just a 4% completion rate, the Eagle Scout is definitely an accomplishment worth noting on your resume.
What is an Eagle Scout?
An Eagle Scout is the highest rank attainable in the Boy Scouts program.
The requirements to attain an Eagle Scout are constantly being updated and refined.
However, generally to attain an Eagle Scout, an individual must be a member of the Boy Scouts, and active in their troop as a Life Scout, for a minimum of six months.
In addition, as a member of the Life Scout, the individual should demonstrate the Scout Spirit and adhere to the Scout Oath and Scout Law.
This includes committing your duty to God and describing how you live your life to the oath and law.
In addition, to attain an Eagle Scout, the individual must earn a total of 21 merit badges, including the following 13:
- First Aid
- Citizenship of the Community
- Citizenship of the Nation
- Citizenship of the World
- Communication
- Cooking
- Personal Fitness
- Emergency Preparedness or Lifesaving
- Environmental Science or Sustainability
- Personal Management
- Swimming or Hiking or Cycling
- Camping
- Family Life
Additionally, as a Life Scout you must serve in your troop for six months within one of the following positions of responsibility:
- Scout Troop
- Venturing Crew
- Sea Scout Ship
- Lone Scout
You must also plan, develop, and give leadership to others and participate in a Scoutmaster conference.
Lastly, to attain an Eagle Scout, you must plan, organize, manage, and lead an extensive service project.
Why to List Eagle Scout on Your Resume?
The attainment of the Eagle Scout is extremely difficult.
With just 4% of all Scouts earning the distinction, it would be remiss to not list it on your resume.
Many employers understand the difficulties in attaining the rank of an Eagle Scout.
By listing the Eagle Scout on your resume, you show potential employers that you are a hardworking, driven, and motivated individual.
In addition, the rank of an Eagle Scout can help you to create bonds and relationships with other Scouts.
Your interviewer may be an Eagle Scout themselves.
This common bond and similar experience will provide you both with additional topics of discussion during an interview.
Lastly, the Boy Scouts have conducted their own interviews with hiring managers on why they hired Eagle Scouts.
In addition to the reputation and the hard work put in, these managers indicated that Eagle Scouts are more honest, are better decision makers, and have leadership qualities to them.
Lastly, they indicated that Eagle Scouts have great work habits and a passion to help.
Should You Remove the Eagle Scout on Your Resume?
While researching this topic, a common theme crept up.
That was whether or not an individual should remove the Eagle Scout from their resume.
The common thinking was that the Eagle Scout would not be taken seriously or would not matter after a certain amount of time.
While the common refrain was to remove the honor, we wholeheartedly disagree.
An Eagle Scout is an accomplishment for life.
Achieving one is not only extremely difficult but is one that is honored for life.
When applying to open positions, you will want to use every available differentiating factor.
Since it’s so difficult to attain an Eagle Scout, it will help you tremendously on your resume.
Where to Put Eagle Scout on Your Resume
When deciding where to put the Eagle Scout on your resume, it is best to include it within the ‘skills’ or ‘achievements’ section.
This section on your resume is reserved for miscellaneous skills or achievements that you may have.
Included in this section can be your grade point average (GPA) and any volunteer work you may have completed.
When listing your Eagle Scout on your resume, be sure to list the year that you attained the rank.
This will help to give the employer an idea of how long it took you to get the rank.
In addition, you may also list along a few merit badges you attained in order to reach the rank of an Eagle Scout.
Conclusion
Listing the Eagle Scout on your resume is one of the best achievements you can list.
With a mere 4% having achieved the rank of an Eagle Scout, it is an accomplishment that you should be proud of and one that should be displayed on your resume.
The Eagle Scout designation can help open opportunities for you and has been shown to be an achievement which hiring managers admire.
In addition to the hard work, perseverance, and dedication needed to achieve the rank, it is also a show of honesty and leadership.