Rate My Professor Mark Masia

Professor Mark Masia is a Professor in the School of Engineering (Civil Engineering) at the University of Newcastle, Australia. He obtained his PhD in 2000 and Bachelor of Engineering (Civil) with Honours from the University of Newcastle. His career began as a consulting engineer at Gutteridge Haskins and Davey Pty Ltd from 1994 to 1996. He then pursued his PhD at the University of Newcastle from 1996 to 2000, followed by a postdoctoral research fellowship at the University of Calgary, Canada, from 2000 to 2001. Since 2001, he has held progressive academic positions at the University of Newcastle: Lecturer from 2001 to 2006, Senior Lecturer from 2007 to 2012, Associate Professor from 2012 to 2019, and Professor to the present. Masia directs the research group on Experimental, Numerical and Analytical Structural Reinforced Concrete, Timber and Masonry Design within the Centre for Infrastructure Performance and Reliability (CIPAR). He has served as Head of Discipline and contributed to ARC-funded projects, including as Chief Investigator on Discovery Project DP180102334.

Masia's academic interests center on the structural behaviour of unreinforced masonry (URM) construction and the strengthening and retrofitting of existing URM and reinforced concrete structures. His expertise includes experimental and numerical modelling of URM structures under out-of-plane loading, in-plane shear, and expansive soil movements; fibre-reinforced polymer (FRP) strengthening; near-surface mounted (NSM) FRP strips; spatial variability and stochastic prediction of masonry strength; bond and debonding resistance; and seismic retrofitting. Key publications encompass 'Modeling expansive soil movements beneath structures' (Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering, 2004), 'Probabilistic modeling of unreinforced masonry walls subjected to lateral out-of-plane loading' (2019), 'Stochastic spatial modelling of material properties and structural strength of unreinforced masonry in two-way bending' (2016), 'Spatial variability and stochastic strength prediction of unreinforced masonry walls in vertical bending' (2014), 'Experimental Evaluation of Static Cyclic In-Plane Shear Behavior of Unreinforced Masonry Walls Strengthened with NSM FRP Strips' (2015), and 'Cyclic in-plane shear behaviour of NSM FRP strengthened URM wall panels' (2013). He edited proceedings for the 14th International Brick & Block Masonry Conference (2008), 9th Australasian Masonry Conference (2011), and 7th Australasian Masonry Conference (2004). His contributions advance design methods, reliability assessment, and resilience for masonry infrastructure.