Eagle Scout Rank Requirements
The seven requirements, the service project approval chain, and the merit badges — in the order they actually have to happen.
44 steps. · About Eagle Scout Rank
Your progress
27 steps can be started now; 15 are waiting on something else.
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The steps
Stage 1 of 14 Can start now
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Life Scout board of review passed
The date everything else is measured from. Requirements 1, 4, 5 and 6 all begin "While a Life Scout", and only what happens after this date counts towards them.
Milestone
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2. Demonstrate Scout spirit, and list your references Often forgotten
Live by the Scout Oath and Scout Law, tell how you have done your duty to God, and list people who know you personally and will speak on your behalf.
Requirement
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3.2. Citizenship in the Community
Training
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3.3. Citizenship in the Nation
Training
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3. Eight elective merit badges
Any eight beyond the required thirteen, bringing the total to 21. A badge from an unused choice slot counts here.
Task
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5. Fundraising application, if one is needed Optional Often forgotten
Needed only when money or materials are solicited beyond the beneficiary, the unit and their members and families. The project itself may never be a fundraiser.
Document
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Statement of ambitions and life purpose, and your leadership positions Often forgotten
Prepared for the board of review and attached to the application: your ambitions and life purpose, the positions you have held outside Scouting, and the honours you received.
Document
Stage 2 of 14
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1. Be active in your unit for at least six months as a Life Scout
Six months of active participation, counted from the Life Scout board of review. Runs at the same time as requirement 4, not after it.
Requirement
Usually comes after Life Scout board of review passed.
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3. The thirteen required merit badges
Fixed by the application. Where a slot offers a choice, earning either badge fills the slot; the other may still be counted as one of the eight electives.
Task
Usually comes after 3.1. Camping, 3.2. Citizenship in the Community and 11 others.
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4. Serve six months in a position of responsibility
Six months in one or more listed positions, counted only from the Life Scout board of review. Runs alongside requirement 1.
Requirement
Usually comes after Life Scout board of review passed.
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5. Obtain the current Eagle Scout Service Project Workbook
Publication 512-927. The version to use is the most current one available when planning starts, so download it then rather than earlier.
Document
Usually comes after Life Scout board of review passed.
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6. Participate in a unit leader conference Often forgotten
Held while a Life Scout. It does not have to be the last thing you do, and treating it as a final gate delays people for no reason.
Requirement
Usually comes after Life Scout board of review passed.
Stage 3 of 14
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3. Earn a total of 21 merit badges
Thirteen required badges and eight of your own choosing. Three of the thirteen are a choice between two or three badges.
Requirement
Usually comes after 3. The thirteen required merit badges and 3. Eight elective merit badges.
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5. Choose a beneficiary and write the project proposal
Identify the religious institution, school or community organisation that will benefit, and complete the proposal section of the workbook.
Task
Stage 4 of 14
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5. Proposal approved by the beneficiary
The organisation benefiting from the project approves the proposal.
Approval
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5. Proposal approved by the unit leader
The Scoutmaster, Advisor or Skipper approves the proposal.
Approval
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5. Proposal approved by the unit committee
The unit committee approves the proposal, which usually means waiting for the next committee meeting.
Approval
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5. Proposal approved by the council or district Often forgotten
The last of the four approvals, and the one with the least predictable timing. No work on the project may start until it is given.
Approval
No work on the project may begin until the proposal has all four approvals, including this one. A project carried out before approval has not met the requirement, however good the project was.
Stage 5 of 14
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5. Develop the final project plan
Detailed planning after the proposal is approved: materials, tools, people, permissions, safety and a schedule.
Task
Usually comes after 5. Proposal approved by the beneficiary, 5. Proposal approved by the unit leader and 2 others.
Stage 6 of 14
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5. Carry out the project, giving leadership to others
"Others" means at least two people besides you. Leadership is the requirement; the work itself is the evidence of it.
Task
Usually comes after 5. Develop the final project plan.
Stage 7 of 14
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5. Complete the project report and collect the final signatures
The report section of the workbook, signed by the beneficiary and the unit leader, is what shows the project was properly accepted when finished.
Document
Stage 8 of 14
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5. Plan, develop and give leadership to others in a service project
The project must benefit an organisation other than Scouting America, and the proposal must be approved by four parties before any work begins.
Requirement
Stage 9 of 14
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The point the certification on the application refers to. Everything except the board of review has to be behind you.
Milestone
Usually comes after 1. Be active in your unit for at least six months as a Life Scout, 2. Demonstrate Scout spirit, and list your references and 4 others.
Every requirement except the board of review has to be finished before the 18th birthday. The board itself may be held afterwards. A Scout who completed the requirements in time may be reviewed within 24 months of that birthday without having to explain the delay; beyond that, and for extensions granted before the birthday, the Guide to Advancement sets out the process.
Stage 10 of 14
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Complete the Eagle Scout Rank Application and obtain unit signatures
The current application form, filled in, then signed personally by the unit leader and the unit committee chair.
Document
Usually comes after Requirements 1 to 6 complete.
Stage 11 of 14
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Submit the application to the council service center
Keep a copy of everything you hand in. The workbook goes with it.
Task
Usually comes after Complete the Eagle Scout Rank Application and obtain unit signatures.
Stage 12 of 14
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Council verifies the application and schedules the board of review
The council checks its records against the application and arranges the board.
Approval
Usually comes after Submit the application to the council service center.
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References contacted Often forgotten
The Scout asks the references listed on the application; the council contacts them. A reference who never replies is the commonest cause of delay at this stage.
Approval
Usually comes after Submit the application to the council service center.
Stage 13 of 14
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7. Successfully complete your board of review for the Eagle Scout rank
The only requirement that may be completed after the 18th birthday.
Requirement
Usually comes after Council verifies the application and schedules the board of review and References contacted.
Stage 14 of 14
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Credentials received by the local council
The rank may not be presented until the council has the Eagle Scout credentials back from the national advancement program team.
Milestone
Usually comes after 7. Successfully complete your board of review for the Eagle Scout rank.
This plan follows version 1, published 7 August 2026. It is a planning aid: the current Boy Scouts of America publication is always the authority, and the sources used here are listed in full. Each step names its own.