 Dean Würtz took Brès's application to the Minister of Education, Victor Duruy, who approved her admission but preemptively brought the matter to the Council of Ministers.The Empress Eugénie also interceded on her behalf.Brès's husband formally gave his consent to his wife's enrollment to the mayor of the 5th municipal district of Paris, and she became a medical student in 1869 in the service of Professor Broca at Mercy Hospital.