Protramid per diem

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DutchAmerican

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Anyone know what the Protramid per diem is in San Diego? My MID “thinks” it is $13. That will barely buy you lunch in CA. He is trying to budget and will likely need to eat on base for the large majority of dinners.
 
DutchAmerican said:
Anyone know what the Protramid per diem is in San Diego? My MID “thinks” it is $13. That will barely buy you lunch in CA. He is trying to budget and will likely need to eat on base for the larges majority of dinners.
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... so many angles in dealing with this. Many parents here mentioned that their Mids work during leave. Since we're all anonymous, my two cents. From USNA website, Commuted Rations (COMRATS) is $13.55 daily; $406.50 monthly. So this is their training allowance during TDY. I think they are also getting their monthly stipend. More on this later. I'm a 30-year vet so I remember the meager stipend as a cadet. My glorious event once a month was to buy a large Domino's Pizza and a
2-liter coke. Now with DS, I gave him a Walmart Money Card where I electronically contribute $400 monthly (increase $100 per academic year). Problem was he spent $800+ during Protramid. Each transaction I received a text message. Once the balance hits under $100, I let him know to push the brake. Same response each time, "no worries, I'm getting paid soon." I don't know the exact amount of a Midshipman pay; but I'll know once he graduates. So after graduation what happens to my contribution? I will continue it as a generational gift for his first house. We talked already about VA Backed Home Loan.
 
The new stipend amounts are higher. 200/300/400/400 versus the 125/225/XXX/500 they had before. So 3/C will get 300 for their new amount.

Also, they are only going to release held pay in $250/month chunks outside of the usual drops they get throughout the later years (per my kid). Dude was bummed because he was expecting a big drop at the end of this month to help with his PROTRAMID in SD. Told him not to go out and spend a bunch before getting there! He's going to be living on ramen and Clif bars for the month if he can't get into the cafeterias!
 
IronmanDaremo said:
The new stipend amounts are higher. 200/300/400/400 versus the 125/225/XXX/500 they had before. So 3/C will get 300 for their new amount.

Also, they are only going to release held pay in $250/month chunks outside of the usual drops they get throughout the later years (per my kid). Dude was bummed because he was expecting a big drop at the end of this month to help with his PROTRAMID in SD. Told him not to go out and spend a bunch before getting there! He's going to be living on ramen and Clif bars for the month if he can't get into the cafeterias!
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What is the held pay for? Just wondering.
 
DutchAmerican said:
Anyone know what the Protramid per diem is in San Diego? My MID “thinks” it is $13. That will barely buy you lunch in CA. He is trying to budget and will likely need to eat on base for the large majority of dinners.
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Just a terminology note:

In the military, the term "Per Diem" is almost universally applied to an official allowance that is authorized by the travel orders and is NOT the Separate Rations allowance of $13 or so. That low amount is because the authorities have declared that there is a Government Mess available to the member. Of course, eating outside of the Government Mess is allowed.

The reason that I bring this up is that you will eventually hear about your (eventual) officer going on travel and the "per diem" will be a LOT higher than $13. There is also a lodging amount that they will pay up to.

The 2023 standard rate for Meals and Incidental Expenses is $59 and that is for places that they do not have higher rates established for. Many/most places that the Navy sent me had higher rates defined. For instance San Diego is $74 and the hotel limit during the summer is $186.

Where a mid is more likely to see this would be for an internship or other special program. Regular Summer Training such as PROTRAMID does not come with Per Diem.
 
LKNBrawley said:
What is the held pay for? Just wondering.
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Others with more direct experience can chime in, but each mid earns the same amount every month (which is a monthly pay determined by Congress as part of military pay schedules). It is $1,273.20/month for a "cadet" for 2023. While the school is "free" to the midshipmen, they are still required to pay for uniforms/supplies/computer/services/taxes/etc. as part of their pay. As such, they have a larger portion held out in the early years with it tapering off by their last year. Additions to the pay would be the COMRATS that others have mentioned. This would be added to their account at the Academy.

Each mid has a "loan" that is paid off while they are at the Academy. This loan is drawn down from their pay. At certain points, the accounting group makes adjustments to what is owed and the outstanding balance in the Mid's account. The COMRATS are added into their account, which bolsters that. They will then issue additional funds at certain times in the Mid's school career which comes as a bigger paycheck for a month (the "held pay" portion).

There is a memo issued yearly which defines what each midshipman will receive for pay, and a table of when they will receive a "held pay" drop. 4/C do not receive one. 3/C and up will get varied amounts, with some fairly big ones coming in the 1/C year.

Now, per my kid from his PROTRAMID briefing, they are tweaking things some, and the mids can request up to $250 from their held pay account at some points. That is the extent of what I know, so take that with a grain of salt! :p
 
LKNBrawley said:
What is the held pay for? Just wondering.
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It's a forced savings account that the Academy can withdraw from in order to pay the Mid's expenses. Its value changes during the course of 4 years and shortly before graduation/commissioning the account is closed and the Mids receive the balance.
 
Yes. That was the same, it was more for the rest.

Just looked. Edit error on my post above. It is $500 for 1/C, not $400. $500 has been the 1/C level for a bit.
 
During PROTRAMID, you are *supposed* to be provided food every meal either through the base galley or they will give you MREs/packed up food. The main expenditure for me was when we would go out and enjoy the town in the evenings/weekends and not eat at the galley. Although it isn’t always possible to get back to base in time for meals when out and about with a group on liberty, you technically are given the option to eat government-provided food.
 
... there you go Mr. (Ms) Tweety Bird, thanks for solving the mystery of the Protramid Parents Worried About Expenses Case.
 
tweety_bird said:
During PROTRAMID, you are *supposed* to be provided food every meal either through the base galley or they will give you MREs/packed up food. The main expenditure for me was when we would go out and enjoy the town in the evenings/weekends and not eat at the galley. Although it isn’t always possible to get back to base in time for meals when out and about with a group on liberty, you technically are given the option to eat government-provided food.
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Is this explained in the summer training briefs or pre-departure briefs?
 
My kid said they got back Tuesday from their flight day at 1830, and the chow hall closes at 1800. He said they had provided dinner for them earlier, but those sat in a car for about 5 hours. So, no one ate them. My kid got an apple and some chips from that. Then, yesterday, his only scheduled activity was a helicopter flight in the afternoon, so he slept in, skipped breakfast, and went to lunch at 11. Guess one meal in a 24 hour period is okay for a 20 year old! :p (Admittedly, he could have got up for breakfast, but chose not to).
 
DD got back on Friday night from Protramid in SD. The month was an expensive one. Daily shuttles from Pendelton to Oceanside were pricey, Uber, train and bus rides, many restaurant meals as either the galleys were closed when they got back from training, hence the hefty credit card statement. DD enjoyed it and overall we were ok with the cost, just FYI for anyone with Mids there currently.
 
LST271 said:
Yesterday my Mid had dinner at a Mexican restaurant on Coronado Island instead of the chow hall. It was an easy decision.
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Hmm Wonder if my mid was with him. He ate Mexican in Coronado last night too ;-)
 
DutchAmerican said:
Anyone know what the Protramid per diem is in San Diego? My MID “thinks” it is $13. That will barely buy you lunch in CA. He is trying to budget and will likely need to eat on base for the large majority of dinners.
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If they have access to the chow hall do they still get per diem? Asking for a friend..👀
 
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