Careers in Spanish — Jobs, Professions and Workplace Vocabulary

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Key takeaways

To ask about someone's job: "¿A qué te dedicas?" (What do you do?) — more natural than "¿Cuál es tu profesión?"

To state your job, use Soy without an article: Soy médico, not Soy un médico.

Many Spanish professions have masculine and feminine forms: el maestro / la maestra, el médico / la médica.

Some professions use the same form for both genders, changed only by the article: el/la periodista, el/la artista.

Key vocabulary: el trabajo (work/job), el empleo (employment), la empresa (company), el jefe / la jefa (boss).

Someone asks you at a networking event in Barcelona: "¿A qué te dedicas?" You're an engineer. But do you say un ingeniero or just ingeniero? And what if you're a woman — is it ingeniera? And how do you ask about their job without sounding like you're filling out a form?

Career vocabulary in Spanish is immediately social and practical. It's one of the first topics in any real conversation — at parties, at work events, meeting new people, or introducing yourself professionally. Getting it right means understanding both the vocabulary and the grammar of how Spanish handles gender in professions.

This guide covers 100+ jobs in Spanish organized by sector, how profession names change with gender, the grammar of stating your job, workplace vocabulary, and natural phrases for career conversations.

How to say your job in Spanish — the grammar

The most important grammar rule for professions in Spanish: after the verb ser, do not use an article before a profession.

✅ Soy médico. — I am a doctor.
❌ Soy un médico. — grammatically unusual (implies "I am one particular doctor")
✅ Soy una médica muy dedicada. — I am a very dedicated doctor. (article added because of the adjective)

Standard structure:

Soy + [profession] → Soy abogada. (I'm a lawyer.)
Trabajo como + [profession] → Trabajo como diseñadora. (I work as a designer.)
Me dedico a + [field/activity] → Me dedico a la enseñanza. (I work in education / I'm dedicated to teaching.)

Grammar note: Trabajar como (to work as) always keeps the article dropped: Trabajo como ingeniero, not Trabajo como un ingeniero. The exception is when you use an adjective — Trabajo como un ingeniero muy experimentado — where the article returns because it's describing a specific type.

How profession names change with gender

Spanish professions follow a few clear patterns for masculine and feminine forms.

Pattern	Masculine	Feminine	Example
-o → -a	el médico	la médica	maestro / maestra, abogado / abogada
-or → -ora	el profesor	la profesora	director / directora, conductor / conductora
Same form, different article	el periodista	la periodista	artista, dentista, deportista, turista
Same for both genders	el/la estudiante	el/la estudiante	agente, gerente, cliente
Irregular / different word	el actor	la actriz	rey / reina, héroe / heroína

Healthcare and science professions

Spanish (m / f)	English	Example
el médico / la médica	doctor	Soy médica y trabajo en urgencias. — I'm a doctor and I work in the ER.
el enfermero / la enfermera	nurse	Mi hermano es enfermero en el hospital central. — My brother is a nurse at the central hospital.
el dentista / la dentista	dentist	Tengo cita con el dentista mañana. — I have an appointment with the dentist tomorrow.
el/la farmacéutico/a	pharmacist	La farmacéutica me explicó cómo tomar el medicamento. — The pharmacist explained how to take the medication.
el/la cirujano/a	surgeon	El cirujano tiene veinte años de experiencia. — The surgeon has twenty years of experience.
el/la psicólogo/a	psychologist	Trabajo como psicóloga en una escuela primaria. — I work as a psychologist in a primary school.
el/la científico/a	scientist	Los científicos publican sus investigaciones. — Scientists publish their research.

Education professions

Spanish (m / f)	English	Example
el maestro / la maestra	teacher (primary school)	La maestra de primaria es muy paciente. — The primary school teacher is very patient.
el profesor / la profesora	teacher / professor (secondary/university)	Soy profesor de matemáticas en el instituto. — I'm a math teacher at the high school.
el director / la directora	principal / director	La directora del colegio organiza las reuniones. — The school principal organizes the meetings.
el/la bibliotecario/a	librarian	El bibliotecario me recomendó un libro excelente. — The librarian recommended an excellent book.

Business, finance and law

Spanish (m / f)	English	Example
el abogado / la abogada	lawyer	Necesito hablar con un abogado. — I need to speak with a lawyer.
el/la contador/a / el/la contable	accountant (Latin America / Spain)	La contadora lleva las finanzas de la empresa. — The accountant manages the company's finances.
el/la economista	economist	Los economistas analizan el mercado laboral. — Economists analyze the labor market.
el gerente / la gerente	manager	El gerente aprobó el nuevo proyecto. — The manager approved the new project.
el/la secretario/a	secretary / administrative assistant	La secretaria coordina las citas del director. — The secretary coordinates the director's appointments.
el/la empresario/a	businessman / businesswoman	La empresaria fundó tres startups exitosas. — The businesswoman founded three successful startups.

Technology and engineering

Spanish (m / f)	English	Example
el ingeniero / la ingeniera	engineer	Soy ingeniera de software en una empresa tecnológica. — I'm a software engineer at a tech company.
el/la programador/a	programmer / developer	El programador trabaja en remoto. — The programmer works remotely.
el/la diseñador/a	designer	La diseñadora gráfica creó el logo de la marca. — The graphic designer created the brand logo.
el arquitecto / la arquitecta	architect	El arquitecto diseñó un edificio sostenible. — The architect designed a sustainable building.
el/la analista	analyst	Trabajo como analista de datos. — I work as a data analyst.

Trades, services and hospitality

Spanish (m / f)	English	Example
el cocinero / la cocinera	cook / chef	El cocinero prepara los platos del día. — The cook prepares the daily dishes.
el camarero / la camarera	waiter / waitress	La camarera nos trajo la carta. — The waitress brought us the menu.
el electricista / la electricista	electrician	Llamé al electricista para arreglar la instalación. — I called the electrician to fix the wiring.
el plomero / el fontanero	plumber (Latin America / Spain)	El fontanero reparó la tubería rota. — The plumber repaired the broken pipe.
el/la peluquero/a	hairdresser / barber	Mi peluquero trabaja en el centro de la ciudad. — My hairdresser works in the city center.
el/la conductor/a / el/la chofer	driver (Spain / Latin America)	El chofer recoge a los clientes en el aeropuerto. — The driver picks up clients at the airport.
el bombero / la bombera	firefighter	Los bomberos llegaron en cinco minutos. — The firefighters arrived in five minutes.
el policía / la policía	police officer	La policía detuvo el tráfico para el desfile. — The police officer stopped traffic for the parade.

Creative and media professions

Spanish (m / f)	English	Example
el actor / la actriz	actor / actress	La actriz ganó el premio a la mejor interpretación. — The actress won the best performance award.
el artista / la artista	artist	El artista expone su obra en la galería. — The artist exhibits his work at the gallery.
el/la periodista	journalist	La periodista investiga casos de corrupción. — The journalist investigates corruption cases.
el/la fotógrafo/a	photographer	El fotógrafo captura momentos únicos. — The photographer captures unique moments.
el músico / la música	musician	La músico toca el violín en la orquesta. — The musician plays the violin in the orchestra.
el escritor / la escritora	writer	La escritora publicó su primera novela a los veinticinco años. — The writer published her first novel at twenty-five.

Workplace vocabulary

Spanish	English	Example
el trabajo / el empleo	work / job / employment	Busco trabajo en el sector tecnológico. — I'm looking for work in the tech sector.
la empresa	company	Trabajo para una empresa internacional. — I work for an international company.
la oficina	office	Mi oficina está en el décimo piso. — My office is on the tenth floor.
el jefe / la jefa	boss	Mi jefa es muy exigente pero justa. — My boss is very demanding but fair.
el colega / el compañero de trabajo	colleague / coworker	Mis compañeros de trabajo son muy agradables. — My coworkers are very pleasant.
el salario / el sueldo	salary / wages	Negocié un mejor salario en la entrevista. — I negotiated a better salary in the interview.
el contrato	contract	Firmé el contrato esta semana. — I signed the contract this week.
la reunión	meeting	Tenemos reunión de equipo los lunes. — We have a team meeting on Mondays.
trabajar en remoto / a distancia	to work remotely	Trabajo en remoto tres días a la semana. — I work remotely three days a week.

Career conversation phrases

Asking about someone's work:

¿A qué te dedicas? — What do you do (for work)?
¿En qué trabajas? — What do you work in?
¿Dónde trabajas? — Where do you work?
¿Cuánto tiempo llevas en este trabajo? — How long have you been in this job?

Talking about your own work:

Soy [profesión]. — I am a [profession].
Trabajo en [company/sector]. — I work in/at [company/sector].
Me dedico a [field]. — I work in [field].
Llevo cinco años trabajando en marketing. — I've been working in marketing for five years.
Estoy buscando trabajo. — I'm looking for work.
Estoy desempleado/a. — I'm unemployed.
Trabajo por cuenta propia. — I'm self-employed / I'm a freelancer.

How to practice career vocabulary in Spanish

Introduce yourself in Spanish: Practice a 30-second professional introduction — Soy [nombre], trabajo como [profesión] en [empresa] desde hace [tiempo].
Learn the gender forms: For each profession you learn, practice both the masculine and feminine form — el diseñador / la diseñadora.
Read Spanish job listings: Sites like InfoJobs (Spain) or OCC Mundial (Mexico) list jobs in Spanish — great for learning sector-specific vocabulary.
Watch Spanish business content: LinkedIn Spanish content, Spanish business podcasts, and interviews with professionals use authentic career vocabulary.
Use AI conversation practice: Apps like Promova offer conversation scenarios for professional introductions, job interviews, and workplace situations — helping you practice career vocabulary naturally in Spanish.

Summary

Career vocabulary in Spanish centers on the question ¿A qué te dedicas? and the answer Soy + [profession] — without an article. Profession names follow gender patterns: -o/-a changes (médico/médica), -or/-ora changes (profesor/profesora), and invariable forms with different articles (el/la periodista).

Workplace vocabulary — la empresa (company), el jefe/la jefa (boss), el salario (salary), la reunión (meeting) — covers the everyday language of professional life. And knowing the difference between el trabajo (work/job), el empleo (employment), and la profesión (profession) helps you use each term in the right context.

Start with your own profession in Spanish, learn to introduce yourself naturally, and expand into the sector vocabulary that matters most for your professional life in Spanish.

FAQ

How do you say "What do you do for work?" in Spanish?

The most natural ways to ask "What do you do for work?" in Spanish are: ¿A qué te dedicas? (What do you do? — most common informal), ¿En qué trabajas? (What do you work in?), and ¿Cuál es tu profesión? (What is your profession? — more formal). In a formal or professional setting, ¿Cuál es su ocupación? is also used.

How do professions change gender in Spanish?

In Spanish, profession names change form based on gender. Many professions simply change the final vowel: el maestro (male teacher) → la maestra (female teacher), el médico → la médica. Professions ending in -nte or -ista stay the same for both genders with only the article changing: el/la estudiante, el/la artista, el/la periodista. Some have completely different words: el actor → la actriz.

How do you say "I am a teacher" in Spanish?

To say "I am a teacher" in Spanish: Soy maestro/maestra (I am a teacher — male/female). Note that Spanish does NOT use an article before the profession after ser: Soy médico (I am a doctor) — NOT Soy un médico. The article is omitted when stating your occupation with ser, unless an adjective is added: Soy un médico excelente (I am an excellent doctor).

What are common jobs in Spanish?

Common jobs in Spanish include: el/la maestro/a (teacher), el/la médico/a (doctor), el/la abogado/a (lawyer), el/la enfermero/a (nurse), el/la ingeniero/a (engineer), el/la cocinero/a (cook/chef), el/la policía (police officer), el/la vendedor/a (salesperson), el/la programador/a (programmer), and el/la contador/a or el/la contable (accountant).

How do you talk about your workplace in Spanish?

To talk about your workplace in Spanish: Trabajo en una empresa (I work for a company), Trabajo en el hospital (I work at the hospital), Mi oficina está en el centro (My office is downtown), Trabajo desde casa (I work from home), Tengo una reunión esta tarde (I have a meeting this afternoon), Mi jefe se llama... (My boss's name is...). The verb trabajar (to work) is central to all workplace conversations.

What is the difference between trabajo, empleo and profesión in Spanish?

These three words have slightly different meanings. El trabajo is the most general — it means "work," "job," or "a task." El empleo specifically means employment or a job position (tener empleo = to be employed, buscar empleo = to look for a job). La profesión refers to a profession or vocation — often implying a career requiring training or education. La carrera means "career" in the sense of a long-term professional trajectory.