Andrew is ... accountant

[Grablevskij]

Andrew is ... accountant. He is ... chief of the bookkeeping department of ... large organization.

My variant:

Andrew is an accountant. He is chief of the bookkeeping department of a large organization.

Could you tell me whether my variant is correct or not?

 

[Rover_KE]

What is the source of this exercise?

Are you going to submit your answer to a teacher?

 

[Grablevskij]

It is a very old russian textbook. Maybe from 60-th. Reprinted many times. Not a bad book. I like it. But with a lot of problem with keys to exercises. No, this is not for a teacher.

 

[GoesStation]

It is a very old Russian textbook. Maybe from 60-th.

Do you mean "from the sixties"?

 

[Grablevskij]

Yes. Very old. Reprinted almost without changes. But they'd better not to change anything in it.

Well, could you proofread my variant? As I'm proofreading the keys in this textbook.

 

[GoesStation]

Andrew is an accountant. He is Chief of the bookkeeping department of a large organization.

Could you tell me whether my variant is correct or not?

It's fine with my correction. It would also be correct as "the chief". If you don't use the definite article, "Chief" is a title and should be capitalized.

 

[Grablevskij]

Hm. Strange.
There is no such a rule in the textbook. And all the examples for this rule are not capitalized.

I'll try to translate the rule:

An article is absent before sungular countable nouns when a noun designates a position or a title that are unique for the scene.
An article is absent before such nouns when they are nominal predicates, appositions.

My brother is chief of this expedition.
We'll discuss the matter with Mr. Smith, dean of our faculty.
He has been appointed captain of the steamership "Minsk".

When a noun is used as a subject or an object, a definite article is placed before them:
The dean of our faculty spoke at the meeting yesterday.
The letter was signed by the captain of the steamership "Minsk".

That is the rule.

As for capitalization of titles, there is another rule:

When before a noun there is a common noun designating a title or a generally accepted vocative, an article is absent. Such words before proper nouns are capitalized:

Professor Pavlov
General Ivanov
Doctor Brown
Mr. White.

So. According to this book impossible are:
1. The chief.
2. A capitalized Chief.

But it is a really old book. At that time English was a bit artificial in the USSR.

 

[Rover_KE]

Additionally, Grablevsky, 'artificial' is not the word you're looking for.

 

[jutfrank]

I think the chief is the best answer. As others have said, you could use just Chief (capitalised) as an official position, but I think as the sentence stands, given the other two indefinite noun phrases, a common noun with a definite article (the chief) is preferable.