Looking to improve

Hey, guys. I've been lurking here for a while and I'm 100% impressed with the level of advice you give so I'm eager to ask some questions and learn.

The background on me: I've been trying to play serious Hold 'em for about the past 6 months. In that time, I've learned a lot and managed to build my bankroll to a level where I think I can actually take a shot at making it grow more rapidly for me.

I have a lot of experience playing 10-man and 6-man NL SNGs on Ultimate Bet. My normal buyins are $10-$50 SNGs. I win them consistently and recently tried playing some MTTs. Unfortunately, I never seem to make it past the bubble. I almost always finish in the top 30% of the field, which obviously doesn't cut it. I'm a full time student but try to play a few hours a day and many hours on the weekend.

Basically, I am wondering if you guys have some advice on how to take my game to the next level and start cashing in these MTTs. My current bankroll is around $2000. With that in mind, what kind of buyins should I look for and how do I make the transition from solid SNG player to solid MTT player?

Thanks in advance for all of your thoughts.