My dissertation examines the marketization of higher education, drawing on empirical case studies from Taiwanese students using "education agents" to apply to U.S. colleges and universities. I argue that without these intermediary agents, applicants and parents may be left flying blindly amid uncertainties, emotional distress, and interpersonal tension in families during children's admission. The existing sociological literature and higher education research mainly concentrates on studying national policies and formal higher education institutions (universities and research institutes), but the private market research is relatively insufficient. Also, the research on international students' transnational movement mostly started from the viewpoint of the students' receiving countries and did not further discuss the status of the country of origin of the international students. My research explores these two aspects and makes new contributions to existing research. Relying on 54 interviews, participant observation, content analysis, and archival studies, my dissertation project focuses on examining education agents' experience in Taiwan. I discuss how this industry was formed in response to the neoliberal wave of American higher education in the 1980s and the development of Taiwan's higher education, thereby promoting Taiwan's higher education marketization. Under today's highly developed global higher education system, I pointed out that the transnational shadow industry maintains the business model and assists students in transnational learning and mobility. Further, I pointed out that the core of the "transnational shadow education industry" for studying abroad is to bridge the differences in transnational culture and commercialize these cultural differences. Through these discussions, I re-examine the existing sociology theories on education and the market and analyze how the market helps us reinterpret core assumptions in higher education admission, such as merit and personal value. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]