Talking About Jobs, Workplaces, and Study in Spanish

Talking About Jobs, Workplaces, and Study in Spanish

In this lesson, you will learn how to talk simply about jobs, workplaces, and study. You will use familiar present-tense forms of ser — to be, trabajar — to work, and estudiar — to study.

The goal is to say what someone does, where they work, what they study, and where they study.

Common jobs

Learn these common occupation words.

• el profesor — the male teacher / professor
• la profesora — the female teacher / professor
• el médico — the male doctor
• la médica — the female doctor
• el enfermero — the male nurse
• la enfermera — the female nurse
• el camarero — the male waiter
• la camarera — the female waiter
• el cocinero — the male cook / chef
• la cocinera — the female cook / chef
• el vendedor — the male salesperson
• la vendedora — the female salesperson
• el ingeniero — the male engineer
• la ingeniera — the female engineer
• el estudiante — the male student
• la estudiante — the female student

Many occupation words change their ending to match the person, such as profesor / profesora and cocinero / cocinera. Estudiante uses the same form for a male or female student; the article shows the gender.

Saying what your job is with ser

You already know ser for identity and occupation.

• Soy profesor. — I am a teacher.
• Soy profesora. — I am a teacher.
• Soy médico. — I am a doctor.
• Soy enfermera. — I am a nurse.
• Soy cocinero. — I am a cook / chef.
• Soy ingeniera. — I am an engineer.

Spanish normally does not use an article before an occupation after ser when you simply state someone’s profession.

Talking about another person’s job

• Es profesor. — He is a teacher.
• Es médica. — She is a doctor.
• Es camarero. — He is a waiter.
• Es vendedora. — She is a salesperson.
• Es ingeniero. — He is an engineer.

The context usually tells you who the subject is.

Common workplaces

• la oficina — the office
• el hospital — the hospital
• la escuela — the school
• la universidad — the university
• el restaurante — the restaurant
• la tienda — the shop / store
• el hotel — the hotel
• la fábrica — the factory

Saying where you work

Use trabajar en — to work in / at followed by a workplace.

• Trabajo en una oficina. — I work in an office.
• Trabajo en un hospital. — I work in a hospital.
• Trabajo en una escuela. — I work in a school.
• Trabajo en un restaurante. — I work in a restaurant.
• Trabajo en una tienda. — I work in a shop.
• Trabajo en un hotel. — I work in a hotel.

Trabajar is a regular -AR verb, so the present-tense pattern is already familiar.

Talking about where other people work

• Trabaja en un hospital. — He / she works in a hospital.
• Trabaja en una escuela. — He / she works in a school.
• Trabaja en una tienda. — He / she works in a shop.
• Trabajan en una fábrica. — They work in a factory.

Connecting a job and a workplace

You can combine two short sentences to give complete basic information.

• Soy profesor. Trabajo en una escuela. — I am a teacher. I work in a school.
• Soy médica. Trabajo en un hospital. — I am a doctor. I work in a hospital.
• Soy camarero. Trabajo en un restaurante. — I am a waiter. I work in a restaurant.
• Soy vendedora. Trabajo en una tienda. — I am a salesperson. I work in a shop.

Asking what someone does for work

A useful question is:

¿En qué trabajas? — What do you do for work?

For this lesson, use it as a practical question for asking about someone’s job.

Person A: ¿En qué trabajas? — What do you do for work?

Person B: Soy enfermero. — I am a nurse.

Another example:

Person A: ¿En qué trabajas? — What do you do for work?

Person B: Soy ingeniera. — I am an engineer.

Asking where someone works

Use the familiar question word dónde — where.

¿Dónde trabajas? — Where do you work?

Possible answers include:

• Trabajo en una oficina. — I work in an office.
• Trabajo en un hospital. — I work in a hospital.
• Trabajo en un hotel. — I work in a hotel.

A short work conversation

Person A: ¿En qué trabajas? — What do you do for work?

Person B: Soy cocinero. — I am a cook / chef.

Person A: ¿Dónde trabajas? — Where do you work?

Person B: Trabajo en un restaurante. — I work in a restaurant.

Talking about being a student

Use ser to identify yourself as a student.

• Soy estudiante. — I am a student.
• Es estudiante. — He / she is a student.
• Somos estudiantes. — We are students.

Using estudiar

Estudiar — to study is a regular -AR verb.

• Estudio español. — I study Spanish.
• Estudio medicina. — I study medicine.
• Estudio ingeniería. — I study engineering.
• Estudiamos español. — We study Spanish.
• Estudian medicina. — They study medicine.

Common areas of study

• español — Spanish
• inglés — English
• medicina — medicine
• ingeniería — engineering
• historia — history
• música — music

These words let you give simple information about what you study without adding new grammar.

Asking what someone studies

Use:

¿Qué estudias? — What do you study?

Possible answers include:

• Estudio español. — I study Spanish.
• Estudio medicina. — I study medicine.
• Estudio ingeniería. — I study engineering.
• Estudio historia. — I study history.

Talking about where you study

Use estudiar en — to study at / in with a place.

• Estudio en una universidad. — I study at a university.
• Estudio en una escuela. — I study at a school.

You can combine what you study and where you study.

• Estudio medicina en una universidad. — I study medicine at a university.
• Estudio español en una escuela. — I study Spanish at a school.

Asking where someone studies

Use:

¿Dónde estudias? — Where do you study?

Person A: ¿Dónde estudias? — Where do you study?

Person B: Estudio en una universidad. — I study at a university.

A short study conversation

Person A: ¿Qué estudias? — What do you study?

Person B: Estudio ingeniería. — I study engineering.

Person A: ¿Dónde estudias? — Where do you study?

Person B: Estudio en una universidad. — I study at a university.

Work or study

Some people talk mainly about work, while others talk mainly about study.

Compare:

• Soy médica. Trabajo en un hospital. — I am a doctor. I work in a hospital.
• Soy estudiante. Estudio medicina. — I am a student. I study medicine.

The first person gives a profession and workplace. The second gives student status and an area of study.

Combining work and study

A person can also work and study.

• Trabajo en un hotel y estudio español. — I work in a hotel and study Spanish.
• Trabajo en una tienda y estudio inglés. — I work in a shop and study English.

The connector y — and joins the two familiar present-tense ideas.

Using pero to contrast work and study information

You can use pero — but to contrast two simple facts.

Trabajo en una oficina, pero estudio música. — I work in an office, but I study music.

This uses a connector you already know.

Reading a short personal profile

Read:

Soy Ana. Soy enfermera. Trabajo en un hospital. Estudio inglés. — I am Ana. I am a nurse. I work in a hospital. I study English.

The profile gives identity, occupation, workplace, and study information in four short sentences.

Reading another personal profile

Soy Carlos. Soy estudiante. Estudio ingeniería en una universidad. — I am Carlos. I am a student. I study engineering at a university.

This profile focuses on student status and area of study.

Choosing the right question

You want to know...	Spanish question
the person’s job	¿En qué trabajas? — What do you do for work?
the workplace	¿Dónde trabajas? — Where do you work?
the area of study	¿Qué estudias? — What do you study?
the place of study	¿Dónde estudias? — Where do you study?

A complete work-and-study conversation

Person A: ¿En qué trabajas? — What do you do for work?

Person B: Soy vendedor. — I am a salesperson.

Person A: ¿Dónde trabajas? — Where do you work?

Person B: Trabajo en una tienda. — I work in a shop.

Person A: ¿Estudias también? — Do you study too?

Person B: Sí. Estudio inglés. — Yes. I study English.

A practical speaking pattern

When talking about work and study, use this sequence:

1. Say your occupation or say that you are a student.
2. Say where you work if relevant.
3. Say what you study if relevant.
4. Say where you study if relevant.
5. Use the matching question to ask the other person for the same information.

From Jobs and Study to Hacer, Poner, and Salir

You can now talk simply about common jobs, workplaces, and areas of study, and ask what someone does, where they work, what they study, and where they study. The next lesson introduces the common irregular present-tense verbs hacer, poner, and salir.