Why Troop 78 Waits Until First Class Rank for Merit Badges

We at Troop 78 believe it's important for Scouts to earn First Class rank before they begin taking merit badges. This is a time-tested practice with several good reasons. 

1. New Scouts are too busy to take on more. We keep new Scouts very busy with our On to First Class program, Summer Camp, our Stairstep to Adventure Summer program, and monthly outings. We need Scouts to focus on the broad range of skills they will need on these outings and Summer Adventures. Merit badges tend to focus on one skill, which sacrifices a Scout’s time and attention that could be used to train other needed skills. Merit badges distract from the skills need to know now. 

2. Merit badges are too hard for the youngest Scouts to complete independently. Scouts who start merit badges too young often get too much help from parents on them. We want Scouts to start merit badges after a year of learning some Scouting independence. 

3. Right skills, right time: Most merit badges that Scouts are capable of completing at a young age are not helpful in the outdoors. Since we are an outdoor-focused troop, we need Scouts to be able to handle the outdoors first. It's more important that young Scouts learn, practice, test, and master outdoor skills because they really are going to need those outdoor skills on monthly outings and Summer Adventures like the MICRO Backpack, the MINI Backpack, and the MINI Canoe. 

4. Skill building in steps: We want Scouts to be introduced to the right level of skills at the right times. Many merit badges build on prior skills. Let’s not start college before we finish high school. Focusing on basic training now will mean better merit badge learning later. 

5. The wrong merit badges: Scouts are often tempted to take on merit badges that are too challenging or inappropriate for their current skill level. This sets them up for a disappointing experience when an older Scout might be ready to enjoy the challenge. For many skills, it’s best to introduce the material at the right level, at the right time in a Scout’s career, and then build on them. First Aid merit badge offers a good example. You really want your Scouts to have a few years of solid first aid training at the Second Class and First Class level before they take First Aid merit badge. With the right basic preparation, they will master the material much more thoroughly later. 

6. Too much to juggle/track: Simultaneously working on rank advancement and merit badges is too much for most young Scouts to track. It becomes a frustrating quagmire of incomplete requirements for Scouts, parents, and sometimes ASMs and merit badge counselors. Frustration and burnout can happen when Scouts get overwhelmed. We don’t want parents to manage this for their Scouts; we want Scouts to develop these skills over time. By keeping Scouts focused on earning First Class, they learn how to manage and track their own advancement. The On to First Class program and Star rank requirements are designed to develop the skills Scouts need to be successful at merit badges. 

7. Scouts are not supposed to start merit badges until Star Rank. Star Rank is the first rank to require merit badges and leadership and that is intentional. It’s like Scouting America planned this! (They did!) At Star, the emphasis of the Scouting program shifts to developing soft skills: leadership, service, time management. While earning Star, Scouts must balance commitments to leadership roles, community service, troop meetings, and outings. They must initiate conversations with adults on a regular basis including merit badge counselors, they must independently work on merit badge study at home, and track progress toward completing 60-70 requirements for six merit badges with six different counselors. Does that sound like your kid right now? Most kids aged 10-12 are not ready for this. 

For these reasons, Troop 78 does not approve starting merit badges for younger Scouts, which means they cannot begin work with a merit badge counselor. 

This will not stop them from having fun and learning!

Scouts who want to go farther should be encouraged to do that outside of the merit badge program. Any Scout who masters orienteering at a young age, for example, is likely to fly through earning Orienteering merit badge once he or she is older. Let's not stop Scouts who want to learn! But the merit badge program should come later.

For Scouts heading to Summer Camp who are not yet First Class rank but pretty close, we will let them start a light load of merit badges at Summer Camp. This keeps them engaged at Summer Camp but not so busy they can’t work on finishing up First Class rank.