Transfers

Transferring is hard.

Emotionally. Logistically. Academically. It’s not just filling out another Common App. It’s explaining your story—why where you are isn’t working, and why where you’re going could. It’s asking colleges to take a second look and believe that this time, it’s a better fit.

At Top Dog, we specialize in that second shot. We've helped students transfer into Duke, Vanderbilt, University of Michigan, Northwestern, Emory, and countless other top schools—not with perfect records, but with real stories. If your first round didn’t go as planned, you’re not alone. And you’re not out of chances.

You just need someone who knows how to read the past and rewrite the future.

So… Is It Easier to Get In As a Transfer? Or Harder?

It depends. Most top colleges accept fewer than 10% of transfer applicants—and at some schools (like MIT or Stanford), the odds are even lower than first-year admission. But some schools—like Columbia, USC, and NYU—actively seek out transfers to fill very specific spots. That means with the right narrative, academic record, and application, it can be your golden ticket.

But the process is brutal if you don’t know what you’re doing. Most schools don’t offer interviews. You have fewer essays to prove more. And you’re often competing against students who’ve spent a year fixing what went wrong the first time.

We’ll help you get honest about what happened, show growth without excuses, and build a story admissions officers want to root for.

What We Do Differently

At Top Dog, we don’t just slap on a new essay and hope for the best. We do a full post-mortem of your first application cycle. We’ll look at what went wrong—whether it was strategy, storytelling, school list, or even just timing—and build a smarter second act.

You’ll walk away with a clear plan, strong writing, and a safety net. Because yes, you’re aiming high. But we make sure you don’t end up stuck.

Our Transfer Admissions Services Include:

Application Post-Mortem. We review what you submitted the first time (essays, school list, etc.) and pinpoint exactly what held you back.
Real Talk + Rebuilding. We figure out what’s changed since your last application—and how to present that shift clearly and compellingly.
Transfer School Strategy. It's not always that you applied to schools that were "too hard to get into." You applied to the wrong competitive school. You were a Cornell kid who thought you would fit into Yale. We know the difference. We help you build a strategic list based on what schools actually look for in transfers—academics, vibe, major, availability, and odds.
Transfer Essays That Hit. You’ll need to be both persuasive and vulnerable. We help you find the exact right tone and story for each school.
Supplemental Essays + Activities. We’ll make sure everything fits the new narrative and doesn’t read like recycled leftovers from your high school self.
Application Management. Calendars, deadlines, portal weirdness—we’re on it.
Ongoing Support. We’re available when that freak-out hits at 11:57pm or when you’re doubting whether this is all worth it. (It is. And we’ll remind you.)

Who We Work With:

Students who aimed too high—or too safe—the first time
Students who didn’t get the support they needed in their current college
Students who felt pressured into a “name brand” and now feel completely wrong
Students whose applications never reflected who they really are
Students looking to change majors, cities, or directions entirely

Let’s Get You Somewhere You Belong

You don’t need to be perfect. You need to be clear, brave, and ready to tell the story of why this next chapter matters.