2019 World Scout Jamboree registration is now live for BSA members

The theme of the 2019 World Scout Jamboree is “Unlock a New World.”

Now you’ve got the keys.

Registration for the 2019 World Scout Jamboree at the Summit Bechtel Reserve is live. This means prospective youth participants, adult volunteers and staffers — known in World Scout Jamboree parlance as the International Service Team (IST) — can register to join the adventure.

The quadrennial event, held at the BSA’s high-adventure base in West Virginia and co-hosted with Scouts Canada and Asociación de Scouts de México, will be the first World Scout Jamboree in the United States in more than half a century.

This historic event will be held July 22 to Aug. 2, 2019.

The World Scout Jamboree (hereafter WSJ) will welcome 50,000 Scouts and leaders from 169 different countries. They’ll gather to meet friends from around the world, develop mutual understanding and sharpen their leadership skills. They’ll do all that at the BSA’s newest high-adventure destination, where a playground of world-class adventure venues awaits.

This means you might climb next to a Croatian, skateboard with a South African or paddleboard with a Paraguayan.

Who is eligible

Participation is open to eligible men and women who are registered members of the Boy Scouts of America. WSJ units will be organized on a regional — not council — basis.

As I mentioned in August, the BSA contingent will include 10,000 people — the largest contingent the BSA has ever sent to a WSJ. The total will encompass Scouts/Venturers, adults and staff.

That will break down like this:

• 7,200 youth participants and adult leaders
  • Youth participants: Boys and girls age 14 to 17 on the first day of the Jamboree. (Birthday between July 22, 2001, and July 21, 2005)
  • Adult leaders: Age 18 or older on the first day of the Jamboree. (Birthday before before July 22, 2001)
• 2,700 members of the International Service Team (the name for staff at the WSJ)
  • Adults age 18 or older on the first day of the Jamboree. (Birthday before before July 22, 2001)
• 100 members of the Contingent Management Team
  • These volunteers have already been selected.

Even though the BSA’s presence at the WSJ will be large, we’ll make up only one out of every five people at the event. That means approximately 80 percent of Jamboree attendees will be from one of more than 160 other countries planning to attend.

Yes, 10,000 seems like a lot, but interest is expected to surpass the number of available spots.

Translation: Apply as soon as you can.

When to apply

The U.S. contingent application opened Nov. 1, 2017.

How to apply

Individuals interested in being youth participants, adult leaders or IST will complete an online application.

Applications will be reviewed on both a council and national level.

Use this link: https://wsj2019.us/apply

What’s the cost?

Participants and Leaders

The participant and unit leader fee includes registration for the Jamboree, meals at the Jamboree, tents, and patrol and cooking gear. The fees also cover appropriate travel expenses (including food) between “Hub Cities” and the Jamboree. An appropriate number of “Hub Cities” will be identified across the continental United States depending on the distribution of youth and leaders that make up the various units.

Applicants will be responsible for the costs to get themselves to and from these “Hub City” locations.

International Service Team (IST)

The IST fee will include all of the items noted above except for transportation and travel related expenses.

Transportation to and from the Jamboree will be the responsibility of the IST member based on when they need to report or depart from their staff assignment.

The World Jamboree Organizers (Host) will provide transportation to and from a limited number of Gateways to the jamboree site. Those Gateway locations are: Yeager Airport in Charleston, W.Va., Charlotte/Douglas International Airport in Charlotte, N.C., the Amtrak station in Prince, W.Va., and the Ruby Welcome Center in Mt. Hope, W.Va..

Payment Schedule

Some notes:

• *Early Bird discount: Applicants who submit a $250 deposit between Nov. 1, 2017, and Jan. 31, 2018, and make all additional payments on time will have a $100 discount applied to their last payment.
• Tours: In an effort to reduce costs, there will be no pre- or post-Jamboree tours.

Selection process

Participants

Participants will be notified by unit leadership if they have been accepted or are being put on a waiting list. If they are put on a waiting list, they will continue to pay according to the payment schedule. Applicants on the waiting list that are not ultimately selected will receive a full refund (including their initial deposit).

Leaders

There will be four leaders per unit, and acceptance timing will be based on the filling of youth in the units that have been allocated to each region. Leaders will continue to pay, according to the payment schedule, even if they have not been confirmed.

BSA area and regional leadership will select leaders based on the leader qualifications. Leader applicants who are not ultimately selected will receive a full refund. If a unit leader applicant is not selected for a unit leadership position, he or she is encouraged to apply for the International Service Team. Once that modification is made in their application, selection for IST positions would be handled by the Host Committee.

IST (International Service Team)

Once approved by their local council and the U.S. contingent leadership, the application will be sent to the WSJ organizers (host). The host will notify the applicant of acceptance and job assignment. Some assignments will likely be given in 2018 and some in 2019. The applicant will need to continue to pay as per the fee schedule above. If an applicant is not ultimately accepted, he or she will receive a full refund.

Scholarships

Partial scholarships will be available, based on need. If received, these scholarships will be applied to the final payments.

More details on this will be out by Dec. 31, 2017.

Where to learn more

Go here.

Photos from 2015 World Scout Jamboree, by Randy Piland

2019 World Scout Jamboree registration is now live for BSA members