Ms Nayia Cominos

Biography/ Background

Nayia has had several career strands including Merchant Banking in Australia for 7 years, Marketing and Management for 15 years, ESL examining and instruction at Tertiary level and for industry in Australia and Europe for over 12 years. She has been working in academic research and teaching in Applied Linguistics since 2006.

Current Faculty Position:

• Associate Lecturer in Applied Linguistics since 2008.

Key Positions Held:

• Research Assistant and Postgraduate Dissertation Examiner, University of Adelaide, SA since 2007.
• Centre Manager, Vocational Language Learning Centre, Adelaide, SA (2006-2007).
• Marketing Manager, Pedagogical Advisor and ESL Consultant, Vocational Language Learning Centre, Adelaide, SA (2004-2006).
• Member of CEL National Working Parties for the European Year of Languages, the development of the European Grill of Linguistic Competence and the European Language Passport. CEL Regional Representative Burgundy, France (2001-2004).
• Commercial and Pedagogical Manager, Centre d'Etude des Langues (member of National CEL network), Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Macon, France (1998-2004).
• Undergraduate and Postgraduate ESL Lecturer and Programme Manager, Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Macon and Chalon-sur-Saone, France and Pedagogical Consultant, UIVB (Beaujolais Inter-professional Winemaker's Union), Villefranche, France (1990-1998).
• Senior Manager Treasury, ANZCAP/McCaughan Dyson Limited, Adelaide (1986-1989).
• Co-Proprietor,  Clos de Haute-Combe Winery, Julienas, France (1991-2003).

 

Qualifications

• Current PhD candidate in Applied Linguistics (University of Adelaide).
• Master of Arts - Applied Linguistics (University of Adelaide).
• Bachelor of Arts (University of Adelaide).
• Accredited Examiner for the European Certificates in French and English in France.
• Accredited Examiner for the DESS Tourism, University of Burgundy, France.
• Accredited Examiner for Final Year Wine-Making, CFPPA-DAVAYE, Davaye.
• One Year Module: Optimising Your Commercial Strategy, AGERCEL Network Consultants, Paris, France.
• Module: Cross-cultural Differences and NLP, facilitated by Fiona Scott-Barrett, Oxford University Press.

 

Awards & Achievements

Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences Divisional Scholarship

Teaching Interests

University of Adelaide:

• Foundations of Linguistics
• Language and Ethnography of Communication
• Language, Communication and Society
• General English for Academic Purposes
• English for Academic Purposes

Kephi Consulting:

• Language for Specific Purposes
• Business English
• Marketing Planning and Development
• Management Strategies for Middle and Senior Managers
• Workplace Strategies for Increasing Motivation and Productivity
• Career Counselling

 

Research Interests

• Academic Literacies
• Cross-Cultural Communication
• Appraisal theory
• Systemic Function Linguistics
• International Medical Graduates
• Language and Learning
• Language revitalization and planning

 

Publications

Cominos, N., Mickan, P. and Bruening, M. (2008) "You've got to use street talk": Australian Medical Practice and International Medical Graduates,  Long research paper, ANZAME 2008 Conference: Practice, scholarship & research in health professional education, University of New South Wales, Sydney.

Conference Presentations:

2007 Discourses and Cultural Practices, University of Technology Sydney. Presented joint paper with Peter Mickan: The Australian way of medicine - its representation in the tutor's discourse in an exam preparation course for International Medical Graduates.

2007 ELSE Conference, Adelaide. Workshop Panel Presenter: Studying Communities in Practice.

2009 ASFLA Conference, Brisbane. Refereed paper: "It is widely noted"- dialogic features of undergraduate students' writing in Linguistics.

2009 Free Linguistics Conference, Sydney. Refereed joint paper with Peter Mickan: Work or Play? Sports training discourse and the transmission of values.

2009 Linguistic Research Forum, Adelaide.  Writing the 'completely obvious'.

Community Engagement

• Sponsor Patron of the State Opera of South Australia.
• Alumna of the Cornell Chapter.
• Friend of the Barr-Smith Library.
• Supporter of Soundstream and the Adelaide New Music Festival. 

 

Entry last updated: Saturday, 7 Nov 2009