 After completing his literary course at age 19, he was dissuaded from a career in the army and remained at Moûtiers for two years, studying philosophy.On October 23, 1836, Miège entered the novitiate of the Society of Jesus (more commonly known as the Jesuits) at Milan, and professed his first vows on October 15, 1838.In 1840 he became chief disciplinarian at the Jesuit boarding school in Milan.