Learning the Spanish of your profession, from healthcare to trades

Key rules

• Health roles: Aim for B2 to C1 Spanish if you work in a clinical health role.
• Trades: A2 to B1 Spanish is usually enough for employed trades; self-employed tradespeople should aim for B1 to B2.
• Safety information: Your employer must give you safety information and training you can understand, which can mean translations or interpreters.
• Who sets the level: Your colegio or employer decides the Spanish they expect, so ask them before choosing a course.

Start with the level your job expects

General Spanish is not enough once you are on a ward or a building site. Pick a course that teaches the words of your field, and set your target by your role.

• Clinical health roles (doctors, nurses, dentists, pharmacists, physios): aim for B2 to C1. Patient talk and records are in Spanish.
• Trades and construction, employed: A2 to B1 is usually enough for site instructions, safety briefings and colleagues.
• Self-employed tradespeople: aim for B1 to B2, because you deal with clients and paperwork.

No single national exam sets the level for health work. Your professional college (colegio) or employer decides what they expect, so ask them first. The checklist below puts this in order.

Health professionals

Your qualification must be recognised and you must register with your colegio before you can practise. That is a separate process from language learning. Public health posts also use exams in Spanish. Some regions, including Catalonia, Valencia and the Basque Country, also ask for the regional language. Private and international roles, or non-clinical ones, may ask for less.

Courses to look for:

• Spanish for health professionals (Español para profesionales de la salud), offered by universities and private language schools.
• University programmes in medical, legal and business Spanish, for example at Salamanca, Universitat de Barcelona, Nebrija and Complutense.

Trades and construction

Safety training for the construction sector, including the tarjeta profesional de la construcción, is given in Spanish. Site signs are in Spanish too. Employers must give safety information and training you can understand, which can mean translations or interpreters. Regional languages matter little on sites. If you are self-employed, add a course in business Spanish for quotes, invoices and client calls.

Where to find courses

• Instituto Cervantes: runs business Spanish (Español para los negocios) and offers the DELE exams.
• Universities: Salamanca, Universitat de Barcelona, Nebrija and Complutense offer Spanish for business, legal and medical purposes.
• Private schools: Enforex, International House, Don Quijote and Tandem offer business, medical and legal Spanish.
• Escuelas Oficiales de Idiomas: official language schools that teach general Spanish for foreigners.
• Cámara de Comercio: offers business Spanish in some cities.

Course names and start dates change from year to year, so compare a few and check what is running near you.

Vocabulary resources

• Medicine: the Diccionario de términos médicos is free online.
• Law: the Diccionario panhispánico del español jurídico is free.
• General: the Diccionario de la lengua española, the Diccionario panhispánico de dudas, and Fundéu for correct usage.
• Glossaries: IATE and TERMCAT term databases, plus Linguee and WordReference.
• Textbooks: Edinumen, SGEL and Difusión publish workplace and medical Spanish titles, such as Socios and Entorno laboral.
• Free materials: the Spanish Ministry of Education and Instituto Cervantes publish learning materials.

The questions below cover regional languages and free dictionaries.

Checklist

• Ask your professional college or employer which Spanish level they expect for your role.

• Aim for B2 to C1 Spanish if you work in a clinical health role.

• Aim for A2 to B1 Spanish for a trades or construction job, or B1 to B2 if you are self-employed.

• Look for a Spanish-for-specific-purposes course in your field, such as Spanish for health professionals, business Spanish or Spanish for law.

• Compare courses from Instituto Cervantes, a university or a private language school, and check which are running this year.

• Bookmark the Diccionario de términos médicos if you work in health, or the Diccionario panhispánico del español jurídico if you work in law.

• Pick a workplace Spanish textbook from a publisher such as Edinumen, SGEL or Difusión.

Frequently asked questions

What Spanish level do I need to work as a nurse or doctor in Spain?

Clinical roles in practice need B2 to C1 Spanish, because patient communication and records are in Spanish. Spain has no single national language exam for health staff, so the professional college or your employer decides what Spanish they expect. Public health posts also use competitive exams in Spanish, and some regions ask for the regional language too.

Which regions ask for a regional language in public health jobs?

Catalonia, Valencia and the Basque Country, among other regions, also ask for the regional language in public health posts. Ask the regional health service you are applying to what level it wants.

How much Spanish do I need for a construction or trades job?

Trades and construction jobs typically need A2 to B1 Spanish, enough to follow site instructions, safety briefings and colleagues. If you are self-employed and deal with clients and paperwork, aim for B1 to B2. The regional language matters little on sites.

Where can I find free medical or legal Spanish dictionaries?

Free online dictionaries exist for both fields. For medical terms, use the Diccionario de términos médicos from the Real Academia Nacional de Medicina.