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Master’s in Catastrophe Modelling and Infrastructure Resilience Engineering (Cat Modelling)

Online master's programme of 1,900 hours in Catastrophe Modelling and Infrastructure Resilience Engineering (Cat Modelling), structured in 12 modules covering cat model architecture, seismic, wind and flood hazard modelling, infrastructure vulnerability, the financial module, exposure data, model validation, infrastructure resilience, climate in modelling and business applications, with an assigned technical tutor.

Duration1900 h
ModeOnline
LanguageEnglish
Start datesSet by the faculty
AwardSEIUM Institute diploma
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Learning outcomes

What you will be able to do

01

Understand the architecture of catastrophe models.

02

Model seismic, wind and flood hazards.

03

Develop vulnerability functions for infrastructure.

04

Apply financial modules with policy and reinsurance terms.

05

Validate catastrophe models in line with Solvency II.

06

Assess the resilience and recovery of infrastructure.

07

Integrate models into underwriting, reinsurance and capital.

Profile

Who it's for

  • Catastrophe modellers in insurers, reinsurers and brokers.
  • Cat modelling analysts.
  • Resilience engineers working on infrastructure and utilities.
  • Accumulation analysts.
  • Seismic risk consultants.
  • Flood risk specialists.
  • Engineering or science graduates aiming to enter reinsurance.
Standards & tools

What you'll work with

  • Directive 2009/138/EC (Solvency II)
  • Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/35 (Solvency II implementing rules)
  • EN 1998 Eurocode 8 (design of structures for earthquake resistance)
  • EN 1991-1-4 Eurocode 1 (wind actions)
  • Directive 2007/60/EC (assessment and management of flood risks)
  • NCSE-02 (Spanish seismic-resistant construction standard)
  • Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030
  • OpenQuake
  • Oasis LMF
  • Moody's RMS
  • Verisk Touchstone
  • HEC-RAS
Syllabus

12 modules · 1900 h

  1. 1.1Origin and evolution of catastrophe modelling
  2. 1.2Components: hazard, vulnerability and financial
  3. 1.3Stochastic event catalogues
  4. 1.4Event loss tables (ELT)
  5. 1.5Year loss tables (YLT)
  6. 1.6AEP and OEP metrics
  7. 1.7Average annual loss
  8. 1.8Commercial and open models
  9. 1.9Model users and applications
  10. 1.10Workshop: reading an event loss table
  1. 2.1Seismic sources and tectonics
  2. 2.2Gutenberg-Richter recurrence relationships
  3. 2.3Ground motion prediction equations
  4. 2.4Site effects and amplification
  5. 2.5Probabilistic seismic hazard analysis
  6. 2.6Spatial correlation of ground motion
  7. 2.7Liquefaction and secondary effects
  8. 2.8Official hazard maps
  9. 2.9Validation with historical events
  10. 2.10Lab: hazard calculation with OpenQuake
  1. 3.1Tropical cyclones: genesis and tracks
  2. 3.2Parametric wind field models
  3. 3.3European extratropical storms
  4. 3.4Terrain roughness and gusts
  5. 3.5Storm surge
  6. 3.6Convective storms and hail
  7. 3.7Tornadoes
  8. 3.8Temporal clustering of events
  9. 3.9Influence of climate on frequency
  10. 3.10Practical exercise: wind field of a historical storm
  1. 4.1Catchment hydrology
  2. 4.21D and 2D hydraulic models
  3. 4.3Urban pluvial flooding
  4. 4.4Coastal flooding
  5. 4.5Flood defences and their failure
  6. 4.6Stochastic event generation
  7. 4.7Water depth and velocity
  8. 4.8Hazard maps and return periods
  9. 4.9Validation with claims
  10. 4.10Lab: hydraulic simulation with HEC-RAS
  1. 5.1Fragility curves
  2. 5.2Damage functions by typology
  3. 5.3Seismic vulnerability of buildings
  4. 5.4Bridge vulnerability
  5. 5.5Energy and water networks
  6. 5.6Vulnerability of transport infrastructure
  7. 5.7Business interruption and contingent BI
  8. 5.8Uncertainty in vulnerability
  9. 5.9Calibration with claims data
  10. 5.10Case study: bridge fragility curves
  1. 6.1Policy terms: deductibles and limits
  2. 6.2Coinsurance and layers
  3. 6.3Loss aggregation by policy and portfolio
  4. 6.4Reinsurance in the model
  5. 6.5Treatment of secondary uncertainty
  6. 6.6Correlation between locations
  7. 6.7Industry losses versus own losses
  8. 6.8Year loss tables
  9. 6.9Indicators for underwriting
  10. 6.10Practical exercise: applying financial terms in Oasis
  1. 7.1Exposure data quality
  2. 7.2OED standard formats
  3. 7.3Geocoding and resolution
  4. 7.4Construction attributes
  5. 7.5Insured values
  6. 7.6Enrichment with external sources
  7. 7.7Critical infrastructure data
  8. 7.8Sensitivity to data quality
  9. 7.9Exposure data governance
  10. 7.10Workshop: cleaning an exposure database
  1. 8.1Validation requirements under Solvency II
  2. 8.2Hazard validation
  3. 8.3Vulnerability validation
  4. 8.4Comparison between models
  5. 8.5Own adjustments and view of risk
  6. 8.6Sensitivity analysis
  7. 8.7Model documentation
  8. 8.8Use of cat models within internal models
  9. 8.9Independent review
  10. 8.10Case study: comparison of two earthquake models
  1. 9.1The concept of resilience
  2. 9.2Functionality and recovery curves
  3. 9.3Interdependencies between networks
  4. 9.4Infrastructure system models
  5. 9.5Resilience indicators
  6. 9.6Resilient design and codes
  7. 9.7Mitigation measures
  8. 9.8Cost-benefit analysis
  9. 9.9Recovery planning
  10. 9.10Practical exercise: recovery curve of a power grid
  1. 10.1Climate conditioning of catalogues
  2. 10.2Climate scenarios in cat models
  3. 10.3Attribution and event frequency
  4. 10.4Sea level and coastal models
  5. 10.5Long-term climate risk
  6. 10.6Climate stress tests
  7. 10.7Climate uncertainty
  8. 10.8Communicating results
  9. 10.9Physical risk disclosure
  10. 10.10Lab: climate scenario in a flood model
  1. 11.1Underwriting with cat models
  2. 11.2Technical pricing
  3. 11.3Accumulation management
  4. 11.4Reinsurance optimisation
  5. 11.5Economic capital
  6. 11.6Catastrophe bonds and model analysis
  7. 11.7Real-time event response
  8. 11.8Public risk planning
  9. 11.9Cloud computing infrastructure
  10. 11.10Case study: optimising a reinsurance programme
  1. 12.1Selection of hazard and infrastructure
  2. 12.2Building or adapting the model
  3. 12.3Exposure preparation
  4. 12.4Model execution
  5. 12.5Validation and sensitivity
  6. 12.6Resilience analysis
  7. 12.7Application to decision-making
  8. 12.8Conclusions
  9. 12.9Master's Thesis report
  10. 12.10Master's Thesis: defence before a panel
Methodology, software & labs

How you'll learn

100% online training on the SEIUM campus, with downloadable material, recorded classes and an assigned technical tutor. No fixed timetables: you progress at your own pace within the intake, so you can combine it with your job.

Each module combines theory, guided reading of the original standard and applied exercises. The working software is OpenQuake, Oasis LMF, Moody's RMS, Verisk Touchstone and HEC-RAS, in free, academic or evaluation versions. Testing is studied through real procedures: running and validating catastrophe models, resilience analysis of infrastructure networks and optimisation of reinsurance programmes with cat models. Assessment is continuous by module, plus the final Master's Thesis.

Standards covered: Directive 2009/138/EC (Solvency II), Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/35, EN 1998 (Eurocode 8), EN 1991-1-4 (Eurocode 1), Directive 2007/60/EC, NCSE-02 and the Sendai Framework 2015-2030.

Assigned technical tutor:every module ends with a deliverable that your tutor marks individually.
Standards-based learning:guided reading of Solvency II (Directive 2009/138/EC and Delegated Regulation (EU) 2015/35) and EN 1998 Eurocode 8 applied to real cases, not as a theoretical annex.
Industry software:OpenQuake, Oasis LMF, Moody's RMS, Verisk Touchstone and HEC-RAS, in free, academic or evaluation versions.
Master's Thesis with defence:A cat modelling project that builds or adapts a model, runs and validates it, and analyses infrastructure resilience for decision-making, defended before a panel.
Flexible format:100% online, no fixed timetables, compatible with full-time work.
Capstone project

Build it end to end

Your final project follows the real engineering workflow, step by step, reviewed by your tutor.

Hazard modelling
Model the selected hazard with OpenQuake or HEC-RAS and validate it against historical events.
Exposure preparation
Clean and enrich the exposure database in OED format.
Vulnerability and financial terms
Apply fragility curves and policy and reinsurance terms in Oasis.
Validation and resilience
Run sensitivity analysis and build recovery curves for the infrastructure.
Master's Thesis
Complete cat modelling project applied to decision-making, defended before a panel.
Career opportunities

Where this takes you

Catastrophe modellerCat modelling analystResilience engineerAccumulation analystSeismic risk consultantFlood risk specialist
Admissions & scholarships

Requirements

  • A university degree in engineering, science or architecture, or equivalent demonstrable professional experience.
  • An internet connection and a computer capable of running the programme's software.
  • English sufficient to read technical standards.

Ready to start?

Send your application today. Our admissions team replies within 72 hours with your study plan and funding options.

Apply now Scholarships
FAQ

Frequently asked questions

The programme totals 1,900 hours over 12–14 months. You set your own pace within each intake, and your tutor helps you plan the workload around your job.

You work with OpenQuake, Oasis LMF, Moody's RMS, Verisk Touchstone and HEC-RAS, using free, academic or evaluation versions. Your tutor indicates the free alternative wherever one exists.

A SEIUM Institute diploma, awarded on passing the continuous assessment and the Master's Thesis. It is SEIUM's own qualification, not an official state degree; its recognition depends on the programme completed and the regulations of each country.

Yes. Modules passed in a course or postgraduate diploma in the same area are recognised in the higher programme. Ask about the recognition policy when you enrol.

A university degree in engineering, science or architecture (or equivalent professional experience), a computer able to run the programme's software and English sufficient to read technical standards.

Start dates are set by SEIUM's faculty for each intake. Our admissions team will confirm the next available date when you apply.

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