Norbert Schmitt
Professor Norbert Schmitt (currently Emeritus Professor of Applied Linguistics, School of English, University of Nottingham, UK) began his career in 1988 as an EFL teacher in Japan and quickly became interested in how language learners acquire their second languages. During his Masters study at Temple University, Japan, he began researching how students learn vocabulary in particular. He extended this interest in vocabulary through his PhD research at the University of Nottingham in 1994. Upon completion of his PhD in 1997, he joined the University of Nottingham staff, and became colleagues with the two prominent vocabulary specialists already there (Professor Ronald Carter and Professor Michael McCarthy). After their retirement, he continued on with the vocabulary specialty. He has researched second language vocabulary issues for nearly 25 years, and his interests have broadened to all aspects of lexical study, including vocabulary testing, formulaic language, corpus-based research, and the interface between vocabulary knowledge and the ability to read and listen in English. A number of his accomplishments include: Nine books on vocabulary and applied linguistics issues; About 60 international journal articles and around 100 total publications.