Merit Badge Counselors
What Are Merit Badge Counselors (MBC)?
Merit badge counselors (MBC) are dedicated volunteers who share their passion and expertise with Scouts, guiding them through the requirements and helping them earn valuable badges. They act as mentors and teachers, fostering a love of learning and igniting curiosity in diverse subjects. From archery to welding, these enthusiastic individuals play a vital role in shaping the next generation of Scouts.
How To Become a Merit Badge Counselor
First step is to review the BSA’s guide to becoming a merit badge counselor which contains several resources about how to start, seen here. In short, you fill out the application, downloaded here, and submit it to the council using the button below. Then, if accepted, complete the training courses found in the My.Scouting training catalog. Once done, your next step is learning how to award merit badges to youth.
How To Award Merit Badges
The infamous blue card. These are physical documentation of a youth’s merit badge progress. Download here to get yourself one. Remember, Be Prepared, both MBC’s and youth should come to merit badge courses with a blue card ready to be filled out.
Don’t want to mess with physical paperwork? Scoutbook offers several features to MBC’s check out their guide video alongside their dedicated help pages. The first step is getting access to Scoutbook and listing yourself as a MBC in the software. For help in creating a Scoutbook account, go here. For aid in listing yourself as a MBC in Scoutbook, go here.
With a Scoutbook account, the next step is connecting with youth through the software. This allows MBC’s to digitally verify merit badge progress of scouts. Check out the video guide on how MBC’s connect with youth alongside Scoutbook’s dedicated help page here.
