oldfort, I can only speak from our experience and it is limited to the schools we went to. Your experience may be different. An example is a prestigious school in NY, where after a long distance of traveling, all that they did was pop a video and send us along with a freshman that pointed at the buildings. We arrived very early and had walked around the campus and actually saw more and learned by ourselves. When we add that to research about stress level, suicide rates, feedback from others, we decided not to bother applying. I won’t go to lengthy details. This is our own experience. I would not draw the conclusion that this may be a good school for your children. Every person will have their own take of the schools.
Your other comment: “if you truly feel people could do great things without going to college, why is your son applying to schools?” People can do great things without going to college. This is not a personal belief, it is a fact. It is an option that some people have taken and succeeded. To conclude, as a result of this, that college is not necessary is flawed logic.