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Erik, I think I understand your position. Comparing oneself to others and "competing" to acquire knowledge or skill can be a strong motivation for improvement but I have seen it get out of hand. If you are motivated purely by the thought of being better than the others you may try to bring them down rather than bring yourself up. You and your classmates may have been above that kind of behavior but many are not and it does not necessarily take anything as seductive as a big scholarship to bring it out (although it can help, the worst stories I have heard are from students trying to get into med school).
I think maybe the question comes down to the line between frienly competition and no holds barred competition, personnally I have found that that line is easier to cross than we like to think (I've seen enough fights in little league hockey and baseball to know that much).
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