Corpus from scratch: Collecting and processing a sizeable EAP corpus in a (relatively) resource-poor context

Carefully designed home-made corpora are a useful source of highly discipline-specific language data. They enable EAP practitioners not only to find out more about disciplinary practice in their own contexts, but also to create bespoke materials and activities for learners with specific communicative needs. The process of collecting and preparing corpus data is often rather daunting, however, especially if the corpus is not solely for personal use, and if it is to include unpublished texts. This paper explains the process of corpus creation from the perspective of an EAP practitioner working in Oman. The project under discussion was undertaken without special funding, as part of the day-to-day activity of a busy college writing centre. Steps in the process included seeking ethics clearance, liaising with lecturers in the selected discipline (civil engineering), collecting student assignments via an online submission portal, converting, categorising and annotating files, and making them available to students and colleagues via the Sketch Engine corpus query interface. The paper also reports on the practical uses of this project, to support Omani engineering students studying in the medium of English. It therefore discusses how working together with students and faculty staff brings benefits to all.