traditional letters and human sciences), greatly emphasises proficiency in mathematics and economics alongside training in philosophy and literature. For a long time, most women were taught at a separate ENS, the École normale supérieure de jeunes filles at Sèvres. However, women were not explicitly barred entry until a law of 1940, and some women were students at Ulm before this date, such as philosopher Simone Weil and classicist Jacqueline de Romilly. In 1985, after heated debates, the two were merged into a single entity with its main campus at the historic site at the rue d'Ulm in Paris. Organisation École normale supérieure is a Grande école, a French institution of higher education that is separate from, but parallel and connected to the main framework of the French public university system. Similar to the Ivy League in the United States, Oxbridge in the UK, and C9 League in China, Grandes Écoles are elite academic institutions that admit students through an extremely competitive process. Grandes Écoles typically they have much smaller class sizes and student bodies than public universities in France, and many of their programs are taught in English, and while most are more expensive than French universities, École normale supérieure charges the same tuition fees: for 2021/2022, they were €243 to register for the master's degree. International internships, study abroad opportunities, and close ties with government and the corporate world are a hallmark of the Grandes Écoles. Degrees from École normale supérieure are accredited by the Conférence des Grandes Écoles and awarded by the Ministry of National Education (France) (). Alums go on to occupy elite positions within government, administration, and corporate firms in France.Valérie Albouy et Thomas Wanecq, Les inégalités sociales d’accès aux grandes écoles (2003), INSEE Sites The École normale supérieure is one of a few schools that still occupy a campus in the heart of Paris. The historic Paris ENS campus is located around the rue d'Ulm, the main building being at 45 rue d'Ulm in the 5th arrondissement of Paris, which was built by architect Alphonse de Gisors and given to ENS by law in 1841. Above the entrance door are sculptures of two female figures who respectively represent letters and sciences. They are portrayed sitting on either side of a medallion of Minerva, who represents wisdom. A formalised version of this frontal piece is used as the school's emblem. The main site at 45 rue