February 24, 2026

Evaluating College Value with Justin Draeger

Are student loans themselves the problem or can they be a useful tool for students and families? And how can students find their best "financial fit" when it comes to paying for college? Justin Draeger divers into these topics, along with how to navigate financial aid appeals.

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About this episode

In this week’s episode, Justin Draeger, the Senior Vice President for Affordability at Strada Education Foundation and a longtime former leader in the financial aid community, breaks down some myths surrounding net price and the price students pay. He also describes how student loans can be a useful tool as long as students and families apply guardrails. He says that loans are not a problem themselves, but unmanageable debt is, especially when students don’t complete their program or borrow too much relative to what they can expect to earn with their degree. He recommends using outcomes data such as completion and repayment statistics, to evaluate schools, while remembering those numbers reflect institutional performance, not a student’s worth.

Justin emphasizes looking for “financial fit” by comparing offers side by side, and checking whether grants and scholarships are predictable and renewable year to year. He also explains how to approach financial aid appeals: be clear on whether your request is need-based or merit-based, bring new, specific information to the table, and ask questions early to cut through the complexities of the system.

Mentioned in this episode

Strada Educational Foundation – Justin’s organization, focused on helping clear the path between education and work
College Scorecard – Federal data set to help evaluate schools by Justin’s suggested metrics

Host

Will Geiger

Will Geiger is the co-founder of Scholarships360 and has a decade of experience in college admissions and financial aid. He is a former Senior Assistant Director of Admissions at Kenyon College where he personally reviewed 10,000 admissions applications and essays. Will also managed the Kenyon College merit scholarship program and served on the financial aid appeals committee. He has also worked as an Associate Director of College Counseling at a high school in New Haven, Connecticut.Will earned his master’s in education from the University of Pennsylvania and received his undergraduate degree in history from Wake Forest University.

Guest

Justin Draeger

Justin Draeger is Senior Vice President for Affordability at Strada Education Foundation, where he works to make postsecondary education more affordable, transparent, and accountable to students and families. His work focuses on simplifying financial aid, improving price transparency, and advancing cost-sharing models that prioritize need-based aid and lower costs for students and families. Before joining Strada in 2024, Draeger spent more than 14 years as President and CEO of the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators and has held leadership roles across financial aid, policy, and higher education advocacy.