I've found the same thing happens in Trek, Steve.
Just as an example, one of my NPCs is a Vulcan who became a Healer on Vulcan for several years and then joined Starfleet to help with the wouded sure to come out of the Dominion War. He breaks down as shown below:
Species: Vulcan
Profession: Scientist
Elite Profession: Starship Medical Officer
Personal Development Package: Scientific Upbringing
Professional Development Package: Medical Doctor
Advancements: 10
Current Age: 80
Current Rank: Lieutenant JG
Former Decipher RPG Net Rep
"Doug, at the keyboard, his fingers bleeding" (with thanks to Moriarti)
In D&D3E, Abyssal is not the language of evil vacuum cleaners.