"Do your research upfront, " said Ben Hartmere, a graduate of University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill's Kenan-Flagler Business School who works for business filing services company File ONE as vice president of business development.

WSJ: Five Ways to Get Support for Your Degree

A. career management center at University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill's Kenan-Flagler Business School, for the past two years has trained admissions officers to look for the same traits a hiring manager might, such as the ability to assess a problem and self-edit their remarks.

WSJ: B-Schools Want to Know: Are You Employable?