Cistercian Preparatory School

"There is no other school in the country like Cistercian. We have three sons: the first graduated from Cistercian and is now at Dartmouth, the second is in 3rd form, and the third will test this year for next year. The school does so much more than provide a superior academic environment. The boys are given every opportunity to grow emotionally and spiritually as the grow physically. Our sons love the school and appreciate the rare opportunity they have to be educated in such a caring, nurturing environment. From conversations with teachers and parents from other schools, there is a profound respect for the formation and character of Cistercian students. The work load is serious - but everything is done for a purpose and with love and compassion for each student as an individual, even as they become part of "brotherhood." Although, just as no one is perfect, no school is perfect, this school comes about as close as anyone could hope for. We wish there was a Cistercian school for girls."

"My son goes to Cistercian. This school is very competitive and not easy to get in. We are glad our boy made it. Actually my boy was transferred from highland school to here. We love this school. Form master Philip is great. This school totally transformed my son to a very kind gentleman. We are glad to see our son getting more ethical and disciplined. Academically, we also found this super. Our son come with lot of homework and complete is very diligently. We are very happy with Cistercian. It is expensive but a great investment for children."

"I can honestly say as a parent of 2 boys that Cistercian Prep is one of the best kept secrets in this city. the young men are molded into thoughtful, creative intelligent leaders who have an outstanding foundation thanks to the large oasis the campus encompasses in the midst of such a busy city. this place is exceptional! not only do they get an education, but the boys also test and challenge each other as they grow up together, such that they act like brothers and not just classmates."

"In the past, there have been several negative reviews for this school, but for some reason they all got deleted. That's why you'll see only positive reviews at greatschools website. Some deleted comments mentioned the problem with bullying at Cistercian. Also, in the past some students have been humiliated by their form masters. In their application package you can see how their SAT scores have declined gradually year after year. In the application package they ask what your religion is, church you attend and baptism information. If your child is not a member of a catholic church, baptized, or your child doesn't go to some of the catholic feeder schools in Dallas then it's very difficult for the applicant to get accepted here. On the good side, this school teaches Latin for the full 8 years program which no other school offers and it's particularly strong in religion (subject taught by the monks from the abbey)."

"Incredible education and formation but you have to get a Form master that is experienced because the one we got several years ago was completely new, and I mean he had never worked with boys of this or any age. This caused for him to make poor decisions, even question reported incidents now knowing how to handle them (doubting the boys). Many parents were dissatisfied and said he was not the "one to go to" when we needed something. This caused some boys to not trust him due to fear as well because they seemed to think he expected them to be perfect, as they said. Plus add all the academic pressure, it's not for everybody. Many boys remain quiet about how they truly feel about this pressure or their parents ignore it because they want them to graduate from Cistercian. We loved the family community there, everyone has good intentions but there is way too much pressure and if I had more sons I would never consider this school again. Why stress them so much at such a young age? Another upper school boy said his Form master humiliated a boy by making him get on his knees for not listening. The boys didn't think that was funny and didn't laugh-we know this boy. So sad."