It’s the season for high school seniors to be approaching panic mode. They’re applying to college.

I know a bit about this, having been through it twice with my own children.

But recently, I got some special insight into the college app process. I wrote a book about it.

Well, I rewrote one, anyway.

Years ago, I got to know a Brown student named David Marcus who now works for Newsday. He just spent a year following a noted guidance counselor at Long Island’s Oyster Bay High School as he helped get kids into college. The counselor’s name is Gwyeth Smith Jr. and he’s known for one of the most creative programs at any public high school — seniors there take a daily class to prepare applications.

I helped Marcus write the final draft of his book.

It’s called “Acceptance,” and was published a few months ago by Penguin. The subtitle is, “A Legendary Guidance Counselor Helps Seven Kids Find the Right Colleges — and Find Themselves.”

Let’s start with the subtitle’s message because it’s so important in this status-obsessed age. There are 1,000 excellent colleges in this country and everyone wants to get into 50 of them. Smitty, as he is called, tells kids that even if they do luck into a “stretch” school, it’s no victory if the place is too rigorous for them. The real goal of applying to college, he says, is to find the right fit. As one college counselor in the book puts it — talking more to parents than students — “Don’t worry about the bumper sticker on the back of your Volvo.”

A key way to find that fit, Smitty feels, is to visit. One of his students did a tour of big Midwest schools — liking Ohio State, Northwestern and Indiana U, but she mostly embraced the University of Michigan. Smitty asked her why. She simply said it felt “amazing.” That was good enough for Smitty. He believes in comfort level as much as studying a curriculum. Michigan moved to the top of her list.

Part of this school-picking process, says Smitty, is for kids to first examine who they are. Are they studious or social? City kids? Or would they be happier on a small, liberal arts campus? If you like activities and action, you’d probably love big “rah-rah” schools, as he calls them.

Although it’s not bad to have a bit of a mix, Smitty feels a college-app list should have cohesion, and not be a grab-bag of opposites. There should be a pattern.

He’s also against over-applying. Each year, some kids spend thousands in fees applying to 20 schools. That again means they haven’t thought through where they want to go. Zero in.

It’s obvious that scores and activities make a difference — particularly for “specialists.” Those are athletes, musicians or other standouts who get recruited because of their talents. But Smitty says schools still have a soft spot for students who show heart. He feels there’s a key overlooked area where that “heart” can be showcased.

The college essay.

It’s a cliché that many students write them at the last minute. Smitty’s kids develop and refine them over months.

Because he pushes kids to pick topics that reveal themselves, the essays often have the double benefit of kids learning who they are. High school students often hide private struggles — like how they coped with a parents’ death or divorce. But admissions officers like such insights into applicants. Though a student can’t outshine rivals who have better grades and scores, they can stand out with their essays. Those make a bigger difference than applicants realize.

And though Smitty doesn’t believe in the game of hiring $10,000 private consultants to groom a student for Princeton with summer art courses in Paris and trips building schools in Costa Rico, he does tell kids they should push for good credentials. He encourages them to take demanding courses, even beyond school walls at nearby two- and four-year colleges. If possible, he also tells students to take both the ACT and the SAT exams, because testing styles can favor one over the other.

And be creative with activities. If you directed the gospel choir in your community church, that can help as much as high grades. So can traditional achievements like being an Eagle Scout — as well as a biography twist, like being the first in your family to apply to college, or helping support a single-parent household with a part-time job.

He has other interesting insights:

•Don’t rush to declare psychology or biology as your major; that increases your competition, since those pools are so huge.

•If you don’t get to know a teacher well enough to ask for an insightful recommendation, that hurts, too.

•A “D” in a key course at the end of your junior year is a very bad thing. If you do get one, and have a good explanation — put it in your app.

•It helps to be a legacy, so apply to a parent’s former college if you have a shot at it and like it.

Oh, and here’s a quirky thing worth mentioning in this computer age, because it’s a mistake Smitty sees: If you’re using the same essay for different apps and mentioning why you love “that” particular college — make sure you change the name for each school. Getting a college’s name wrong doesn’t help.

In the end, his philosophy is less is more: Fewer than 10 schools on your list. Less thinking there’s only one perfect college for you. Less fancy writing in your essay. Less stress period.

As Smitty and another counselor summed it up in a chat about what parents should take to heart about their kids: “They’ll get an education, they’ll have friends, they’ll get jobs.”

And those things will fall into place much better if they find the right college, instead of the most prestigious.

It’s the season of panic among high school seniors.

It doesn’t have to be.

mpatinkin@projo.com