Why do we as parents become crazed at this process. Stalking forums, checking stats, comparing kids? I know not all do this but many do. Just look at this board. My DS has applied to UPenn, Dartmouth, Notre Dame, Duke also but the same intensity is not there. Is there even a forum for those places? What do you think it is about the service academies that causes this frenzy?
fifi5: Since only 1% of the population serves in the military, the service academies and ROTC are unknowns to many of those who apply to them. Process, details, terms, commitments, etc are new and confusing. This forum serves to help answer these things.
The application process at a civilian school is much more known and comparative statistics are provided by schools, ranking organizations, and other sources. Pay an application fee, send your test scores and you can apply anywhere. There are no physical fitness tests, interviews, etc.
I can't speak for the other schools you listed, but I know a lot about Notre Dame. There is a tremendous frenzy around the school from a well-established Alumni network, Information nights held around the country, tours, on-campus interviews, summer seminars, summer camps, etc. The university gladly posts the stats of its incoming classes and boasts about its geographic influence. You can bet that parents and prospective students measure themselves against this benchmark before applying and seek any "edge" they can in the application process (letters of recommendation, participation in summer events, donations, etc).
Its not really all that different from what you describe at the service academies.