I understand what you were trying to arrive at. But sometimes, I blame the institutions that these participants come from. The onus lies on them to educate students and their parents on how arrangements should be properly done. Some study Abroad offices are very lazy (excuse me for that word). it is their responsibility to keep the students well informed. I acknowledge some of them though. Some very good universities and colleges have Gap Year programs that they had established through an agency. This is much prudent.
Absolutely, students must know their calendar and the have the luxury of time to plan. Rush decisions are costly but their parents have the money so they dont care.