PhD candidate in Earthquake Engineering.

Besim began his academic journey by earning a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Yildiz Technical University in Istanbul, Turkey. Afterwards, he pursued a Master of Science in Civil Engineering for Mitigation of Risk from Natural Hazards, Reduction of Seismic Risk curriculum jointly offered by the University of Pavia and the School of Advanced Studies IUSS Pavia.
During his MSc thesis, his research aimed to use statistical learning, a.k.a. machine learning algorithms, for predicting building responses, with the ultimate motivation of reducing the time required due to the time-consuming nonlinear response history analysis.
After completing his master's degree, Besim transitioned to the industry, where he gained practical experience in seismic design, performance assessments, and retrofitting for various industrial and residential projects.

As a PhD student, Besim's research focuses on the contemporary challenge of optimising integrated retrofitting strategies for the simultaneous needs for energy efficiency and seismic performance in residential buildings.