Applying to MS, what gives?

I am in the throes of applying to public middle schools for my daughter. Where I live, each school has their own set of criteria to evaluate candidates--some interview, some do assessment tests, some just look at grades and some are by lottery. I feel sorry for my 11 y.o. having to go through all of this. Colleges and universities got it right--grades, SAT or ACT scores and an essay for all of them. What are we doing to our kids?!