Una profesora

Question

"Sylvie es una profesora francesa." - Just wondering with this one, normally I would say 'Sylvie es profesora', or similar with professions... is this an exception, or is there an option to use either/or?  Thanks in advance, you guys are the best!

Answer

Hola Claire,
you are right by thinking there is no article when we say what we do or other people do for a living:

Soy profesor.
Carmen es secretaria.
Ellas son ingenieras.

But if we are a bit more specific adding extra information we then  use un/una, like in these examples:

Soy un profesor con experiencia. 
(I am an experienced teacher.)
Carmen es una secretaria muy eficiente. 
(Carmen is a very efficient secretary)
Sylvie es una profesora francesa. 
(Sylvie is a French teacher.)

I hope this clarified it.
Saludos,
Inma