Said no one ever. At least not unironically.
I mean I completely agree with you that it’s not worth going into big debt or putting yourself under great financial stress, for sure. And I agree Villanova is not very generous with financial aid. (FWIW 40 percent of students receive need-based aid, which is the same percentage as many private schools without large endowments. And even at generous aid schools with huge endowments, like Harvard, only a little over half the students get any. My point is most private schools are “rich kid” schools to a large degree so it’s in no way unique to Nova.)
But a party school?! I mean come on. Have you been there? I have a kid in Greek Life there. There are some parties off campus…I mean they are in College. I’ve never met a single student…and I’ve met hundreds recently…that would abide your notion that Nova is a “party haven”. Almost all lament the opposite. Well actually some don’t lament it, but still. Never met a current student who considers it a big party school.
But back to OP…I understand where you are coming from. Nova is a great fit for my kid. I just can’t see how it could be worth the financial stress, especially since you have a younger one coming up soon too.