Earthquake Engineering Uncovered: A Beginner’s Guide to Basics and Principles

As cities grow and infrastructure becomes increasingly complex, society is more dependent than ever on buildings and systems that can withstand natural hazards. Among these, earthquakes pose some of the greatest risks—often striking without warning and leaving devastation in their wake. Yet, the knowledge and tools exist to dramatically reduce these risks.

Just as we've learned to build for wind and fire, we can design to endure seismic forces. But what makes a structure earthquake-resistant, and how do engineers predict and plan for such unpredictable events? Earthquake engineering provides the answers—and it begins with understanding the basics.

About the course

In this course, you will explore the fundamental principles of earthquake engineering. You will gain essential knowledge about the nature of earthquakes, how they affect buildings, and how engineers design structures to resist seismic forces. By the end of the course, you will have a solid foundation in earthquake engineering basic concepts and a better understanding of how to evaluate and design safer buildings for seismic resilience.

The course contains

This course introduces learners to the core elements of earthquake engineering. Starting with the basics of seismic activity, it covers how buildings behave under earthquake loads, and provides an overview of modelling and analysis methods used in modern engineering practice. The course also explores how seismic design principles are implemented through codes and performance-based approaches.

You will explore

• Earthquake characteristics: causes, seismic waves, fault types, ground motion, and site effects
• Seismic loading: how earthquakes exert force on structures and how building codes handle it
• Ground motion records and modelling: how input motions are generated, selected, and applied
  
• Evaluation of structural response: modelling techniques, demand estimation, and performance assessment
• Seismic design: introduction to analysis techniques including response spectrum, pushover, and dynamic time-history methods
• Structural response: key properties like strength, stiffness, ductility, damping, and overstrength

Who is the course for?

This course is designed for early-career civil, structural, and earthquake engineers, recent graduates, and professionals in related fields such as architecture, construction, and urban planning. It is ideal for those seeking to build foundational knowledge in earthquake engineering for career development or transition into seismic design roles.

Register

• Register here External link, opens in new window.