Question 1

Who is eligible to enroll in USA Girl Scouts in Singapore?

Accepted Answer

All girls who attend international schools (regardless of nationality) and all girls holding US passports are eligible to enroll in USA Girl Scouts Overseas. Moreover, all girls holding foreign passport who attend local schools are also eligible to enroll in USA Girl Scouts in Singapore. Currently, we have girls from more than 30 countries involved.

Question 2

What if my daughter is not in one of the eligible categories?

Accepted Answer

Please contact the Registrar so we can gather some information and submit the request on your behalf. As each girl’s situation is unique, we cannot guarantee the outcome.

Question 3

How old does my daughter have to be?

Accepted Answer

Participation in USA Girl Scouts is divided into several ‘Levels’ by the girl’s grade-level in school. Girls can join at the Daisy level in Kindergarten (typically age 5-7), right up to the Ambassador level in High School (typically age 16-18). Any girl can join at any age and will be placed in a Troop that is appropriate for her grade-level and age. While the USA Girl Scout levels correspond to the typical USA public school system, please don’t worry if you don’t know the corresponding “USA grade level” for your daughter’s school program. Girls are always placed in Troops that are appropriate for their age.

Question 4

What schools have Troops?

Accepted Answer

At this time, there are Troops that based at the Singapore American School (SAS), Stamford American International School (SAIS), Canadian International School (CIS), International Community School (ICS), Overseas Family School (OFS) and the Winstedt School. And, we are working to bring the USA Girls Scouts program to other international schools as well. Girls from other schools can join these troops, but this can be difficult if the troop meets on campus immediately after classes end.

Question 5

What if there isn’t a Troop at my daughter’s school?

Accepted Answer

We have girls participating from more than 20 different schools throughout Singapore, and we are growing each and every year. We have many "Community Troops" that are not affiliated with a school and have girls from several different schools.
 
Girls can actually join ANY Troop in Singapore that fits their age level. In fact, many girls from schools that have affiliated Troops choose to join Troops at other schools or Community Troops due to schedule, location or other reasons.
 
You can indicate your preferences for days, times and locations on your sign up form. The Registration Committee takes these into account and works hard to find a good match for every girl. While there are no guarantees of a perfect match to everyone's criteria there are very few situations where we can't find any reasonable options.

Question 6

How do I find a Troop for my daughter?

Accepted Answer

The first step is to get her signed up on our roster for the upcoming school year (see “How do I sign up my daughter?” below). After the sign up period closes, the Registration Committee meets to match girls on the sign up roster with existing Troops as well as form new Troops with new Leader Volunteers. By the end of September (Semester 1) or January (Semester 2) parents are notified of their daughter’s Troop assignment.
While the Registration Committee works hard to honor requests for matching girls by school, schedule and/or location, it is not always possible. In past years, we have been able to offer a Troop space to nearly every girl who signed up, although for some it was not their first choice of school, schedule or location.
 
If finding a Troop is important to your family, please consider volunteering to be a Troop Leader and forming a new Troop. Not only will your daughter have a guaranteed place, you determine the meeting schedule and location(s) AND you will be helping other girls looking for troops as well! We can help you find a co-leader if need be. For more information about becoming a Troop Leader, please contact us.

Question 7

What day and time will my daughter’s Troop meet?

Accepted Answer

Troop Leaders set the schedule for their own individual Troops. Some meet on a weekday after school, others meet on weekends. Depending on the age-level and what projects or badges they are working on, Troops may meet weekly, twice monthly, or monthly. And, these schedules often change from year-to-year as new Troop Leader volunteers join, and new Troops are formed.
 
When filling out the sign up form, you can let us know what time works best for her in the "Special Requests" section. Troop assignments are completed in September & January and we make every effort to match girls to Troops by requested schedule and location. However, we cannot guarantee a match for every girl’s requests.

Question 8

How do I sign up my daughter?

Accepted Answer

How she gets signed up depends on her past experience with USA Girl Scouts and when you are signing her up. USAGSO-Singapore conducts sign up entirely online from our website during three annual periods:
 
Early Bird Registration (April through May) is for only girls who participated in USA Girl Scouts in Singapore during the prior school year. Early Bird registrants receive a limited edition patch for their uniform vest. In late September, parents are notified of their daughter’s Troop assignment.
 
Semester 1 Registration (July through August) is for all new girls starting the school year in Singapore or returning Girl Scouts who missed Early Bird Registration. In late September, parents are notified of their daughter’s Troop assignment.
 
Semester 2 Registration (December through mid-January) is for girls who want to join for the just second half of the school year. Troops that have space available can welcome new girls. In late January, parents are notified of their daughter’s Troop assignment if space is available.
 
A program participation fee is collected as part of the sign up process.

Question 9

How much does it cost?

Accepted Answer

Like many kids activities, partipating in Girl Scouts has a number of different costs associated with it.
 
Participation Fee
This is charged as part of the online sign up process and covers two important things:
Approximately $65 SGD goes to the USA Girl Scouts membership office for insurance coverage to participate in Girl Scout activities and covers program development costs.
The remainder goes to the USAGSO-Singapore local program fund which covers the supplied materials for each Girl Scout (badges, local insignia, awards, member T-shirts, etc.) and all operating costs for the local non-profit organization (training, first aid equipment, meeting space, website, etc.) .
Uniforms & Insignia
If your daughter is joining Girl Scouts for the first time or is moving up to a new age level, she will be given a set of insignia items for her uniform as part of her registration fee by the council. The only thing she will need to purchase is a uniform vest and troop numerals, which can be ordered directly from the USA Girl Scouts online store and typically cost between $40-$50 SGD (not including shipping). We provide complete Uniform Ordering Information for each Girl Scout age level and many Troops work together at the beginning of the scouting year to place large orders to save on shipping costs. Be sure to check with your troop leader before placing an order yourself; it can save you a lot on shipping costs!
 
Troop Dues
Troops typically also collect dues that are used for their own programs, such as badges, field trips, fun events, etc. Each Troop determines the amount of their own dues, so amounts vary from Troop to Troop.
 
Events
Some of our major events (i.e. Father-Daughter Dance, Camps, etc.) charge a fee to cover the cost of venue rental, food and materials. Costs for these vary each year and are charged separately since not every girl or family can participate in every event.
 
Financial aid is available, if needed; contact the Overseas Committee Chair and confidential arrangements can be made.

Question 10

How do I pay the program participation fee?

Accepted Answer

Payment is expected at time of sign up. Our preferred methods of payment are PayNow, bank transfer and PayLah, although we also accept other forms of payment. Please refer to our Payments Policy for detailed information. Payment is due by the last day of the sign up period. All unpaid sign ups are automatically cancelled at the deadline to ensure fairness when placing girls in Troops.

Question 11

Can I sign up "in person" and talk to someone first?"

Accepted Answer

The USAGSO-Singapore organization is run 100% by unpaid volunteers and has no permanent office location. We support hundreds of families across Singapore and our membership is growing every year. In order to better serve everyone, several years ago we ceased running a single-day "in person" sign up event with paper forms and switched entirely to multi-month online sign up periods and we have never looked back.
 
At the beginning of every new school year we have information booths set up at Open House and Parent/PTA Coffee events at several international schools. We also hold a few informal information meetings/coffees at local restaurants. These events are announced on our website over the summer and are an opportunity to meet some of our committee members and Troop Leaders to ask questions about Girl Scouts before signing up.
 
And, you can always contact us at any time with any questions and we will respond promptly.

Question 12

Is there a priority system for placing girls in Troops?

Accepted Answer

Yes, there is. The priorities are as follows:

1. Girls whose parents volunteer for an official role in USAGSO-Singapore as a Troop Leader or Executive Committee member
2. Eligible Girls who complete Early Bird Registration and were enrolled in USAGSO-Singapore in the previous year
3. Eligible Girls who complete Early Bird Registration and are new to USAGSO-Singapore.
4. All other girls on the sign up roster.

Girls are also placed in "first-come, first-served" order each category. We cannot guarantee a space in a Troop as it depends entirely on the number of parents who volunteer as Troop Leaders each year. So signing up as early as possible is a good way to improve the chance your daughter will be placed in a Troop. And if you want to guarantee a spot for her, why not consider volunteering to be a Troop Leader yourself!

Question 13

What if my daughter doesn't get matched with a Troop?

Accepted Answer

The Registration Committee works hard to find space for every girl. However, we cannot guarantee the space offered will exactly match her requested schedule and location. Please consider volunteering to be Troop Leader and forming a new Troop. Not only will your daughter have a guaranteed place, but you will be helping other girls looking for Troops as well!
 
In the case where you turn down the space offered within seven days of the close of registration, the portion of the collected program fees that constitutes the USAGSO-Singapore local program fund ($110) will be refunded. Please don’t worry; the vast majority of girls interested in Girl Scouts in Singapore ultimately find a Troop.

Question 14

What if we are leaving Singapore and want to joint Girl Scouts in our new home country?

Accepted Answer

If your daughter is an actively registered member of USA Girl Scouts Overseas in Singapore and you are moving to another country, her membership and records can be transferred in full to another council in your new home country. However, USAGSO Singapore cannot perform the transfer; a parent/guardian on record with USA Girl Scouts must initiate it.
 
The transfer process varies depending on what country you are moving to/from. So please visit the USAGSO FAQ on Transferring Overseas and follow the instructions for your specific situation. If you are moving to another USAGSO community or country, you may fill out this transfer form.
 
We will certainly be sad to see her go, but we're happy she will continue on in Girl Scouts!