The Core Sequence

Northwestern University Center for Public Safety offers the most respected series of crash investigation and reconstruction courses available for aspiring and experienced professionals. Our core sequence begins with an immersive introduction of essential investigative procedures, advances through crucial math and physics concepts and formulas, and concludes with unmatched reconstruction concepts and hands-on techniques. Each course is a prerequisite for the next in the series and is offered in on-ground and online formats. This sequence also is a prerequisite for many of our advanced reconstruction courses. Students who successfully complete the five-course sequence qualify for our NUCPS Traffic Crash Reconstruction Professional email signature logo.


View Dates & Locations for Upcoming Sequence Courses


Click on a course to learn more, review course format options, and download curriculum details.

Crash Investigation 1

On-Ground or Online

Prerequisites: None |Download Curriculum Details

The moments immediately following a traffic collision are crucial, and only a well-trained crash investigator knows how to identify and collect the necessary information at the crash scene and to how begin the interpretation of that evidence. Crash investigators must work quickly  to properly preserve significant physical results before the crash scene is altered or evidence disappears.

Based on J. Stannard Baker and Lynn Fricke’s world-renowned text, Traffic Crash Investigation — a copy of which is included in the course tuition —  this course is the bedrock of the Center for Public Safety's Crash Investigation & Reconstruction program and incorporates an in-depth study of the skills needed to systematically investigate a traffic crash. Students learn techniques for obtaining information from witnesses and individuals involved in the crash, recognizing and properly recording roadway and vehicle evidence, measuring and photographing the crash scene, and creating sketches and after-crash diagrams. The course also introduces students to the use of electronic devices (EDR) to collect and record at-scene data. 

Register for Crash Investigation 1 On-Ground

Crash Investigation 1 Online & Crash Investigation 1 Online Accelerated

Crash Investigation 1 Online and the faster-paced Crash Investigation 1 Online Accelerated offer the same course curriculum as our on-ground format but with the convenience of progressing through the course from wherever and whenever you like. 

  • Crash Investigation 1 Online is 8 total weeks.
  • Crash Investigation 2 Online Accelerated is 4 weeks.

Online Learning Type: Online Learning. Both online formats are asynchronous and instructor-led with assignment due dates and required contributions to weekly course discussions. Instructors are available for discussion during the course with students. Click to learn more about NUCPS Online Learning.

Register for Crash Investigation 1 Online

Register for Crash Investigation 1 Online ACCELERATED 

Crash Investigation 2

On-Ground or Online

Prerequisites: Crash Investigation 1 (On-Ground or Online)  | Download Curriculum Details

At-scene traffic crash data collection is useful only if all appropriate data is properly collected, interpreted, and analyzed. Officers and investigators who successfully complete Crash Investigation 2 develop skills in technically preparing crash investigation data and collecting follow-up data. Building upon topics examined in Crash 1, students delve further into the information available at a crash scene, how to properly collect it, and how to initiate its interpretation. Like Crash Investigation 1, the course is rooted in Baker and Fricke’s Traffic Crash Investigation and emphasizes vehicle behavior in crashes, vehicle damage analysis, advanced measuring and mapping, properly downloading and preserving digital evidence from collision investigations, examining road marks and tire damage, and more.

Recently Added Topics include:

  • Technical Report Writing
  • Our Crash Data Retrieval Operator course is now included within Crash Investigation 2. Students will complete the course certified to download and preserve event data recorders from vehicles. 

Register for Crash 2 On-Ground

Crash Investigation 2 Online / Online Accelerated 

The standard Crash Investigation 2 Online and the fast-paced Crash Investigation 2 Online Accelerated both offer the same course curriculum as their on-ground counterpart, building upon the foundational topics examined in Crash 1. 

  • Crash Investigation 2 Online is 8 total weeks.
  • Crash Investigation 2 Online Accelerated is 4 weeks.

Online Learning Type: Online Learning. Both online courses are asynchronous and instructor led with assignment due dates and required contributions to weekly course discussions. Instructors are available for guidance. Click to learn more about NUCPS Online Learning.

Register for Crash 2 Online!

Register for Crash Investigation 2 Accelerated Online

Math & Physics Review for Crash Reconstruction

On-Ground or Remote / Blended Learning

Prerequisites: Crash Investigation 1 & Crash Investigation 2; | Download Curriculum Details 

This optional sequence course is designed specifically for students who need to learn or review the basic and intermediate mathematics and physics needed for success in Vehicle Dynamics and Traffic Crash Reconstruction 1 & 2. 

Lessons begin with the basics of high school-level math and physics and progress through intermediate concepts. Our course instructors review such fundamentals as perimeter and area, order of operations, angle measurements, and unit conversions before advancing to more complex topics, such as linear and quadratic functions, vectors, and Newton’s Laws of Motion. Participants learn the proper use of equations in order to  solve for velocity, acceleration, and distances of travel. Students’ confidence and abilities are solidified with practice problems.

Contact nucps@northwestern.edu for information on up-coming on-ground sections.

NEW FORMAT! MATH & PHYSICS REVIEW REMOTE (BLENDED LEARNING)

Math & Physics Review Remote / Blended Learning offers the same course curriculum as its on-ground counterpart but in a live, online setting. Each live session is now recorded. Unlike prerecorded, canned lectures from other institutions, NUCPS will be provides recordings of your actual class and discussion. These recordings are not intended to take the place of the remote classroom experience but to help students review live lecture and discussion as they study or to view material they may have missed due to an unavoidable absence.

Online Learning Type: Blended Learning. Remote, online course per the posted course schedule. Students should also expect asynchronous course work, study, and exams outside of hours. Click to learn more about NUCPS online learning formats.

Register for MATH & PHYSICS REVIEW  BLENDED LEARNING

Vehicle Dynamics

On-Ground or Remote / Blended Learning

Prerequisites: Crash Investigation 1 & Crash Investigation; Math & Physics Review for Crash Reconstruction (strongly recommended) | Download Curriculum Details 

Note: Familiarity with high school-level physics algebra, geometry, and trigonometry is needed. We highly recommend Math & Physics Review for Crash Reconstruction for students who have not learned or reviewed these skills in the last 15 years.

This course introduces students to mathematical formulas and the basic physics used in traffic crash investigation and reconstruction. Instructors present the proper application of physics principles to equations of motion in order to solve for velocity, time, acceleration, and distances of travel. Once these concepts are understood, instruction continues to vehicle braking, drag factors, and coefficients of friction and time-distance analysis.

Select a Vehicle Dynamics Section & Register!

NEW FORMAT! VEHICLE DYNAMICS REMOTE / BLENDED LEARNING

Vehicle Dynamics Blended Learning offers the same course curriculum as the traditional on-ground class but with the flexibility of Online Learning and the classroom engagement of Remote Learning. NUCPS provides recordings of your actual class and discussion that help you review live lecture and discussion as you study or view material you may have missed due to an unavoidable absence.

Online Learning Type: Blended Learning. Remote, live classes run per the posted course schedule, generally Mondays, Tuesdays, and 1/2-day Fridays. Students should also expect asynchronous course work, study, and exams. Northwestern's carefully selected, expert adjunct instructors also will be available for office hours.  Click to learn more about NUCPS Blended Learning.

Register for Vehicle Dynamics Remote / BLENDED Learning

Traffic Crash Reconstruction 1 (80 ACTAR CEUs)

On-Ground or Remote / Blended Learning

Prerequisites: Crash Investigation 1 & 2, Vehicle Dynamics | Download Curriculum Details
Note: Familiarity with high school-level physics algebra, geometry, and trigonometry is needed. We highly recommend Math & Physics Review for Crash Reconstruction for students who have not learned or reviewed these skills in the last 15 years.

Learn the foundations of traffic crash reconstruction! Building on the curriculum taught in the first three courses of this series, students learn to understand the determination of how a crash occurred. Based on Lynn Fricke’s textbook, Traffic Crash Reconstruction, curriculum focuses on analyzing and interpreting information that has been collected at lower levels of investigation in order to describe — in as much detail as possible — the crash and the events leading to impact. Students apply the lessons from daily lectures to real-world case study situations — an instruction format that provides students with the training necessary to reconstruct traffic crashes. After successfully completing this course, students will have the ability to reconstruct crash situations using momentum and mechanics. A copy of Traffic Crash Reconstruction is included in the course tuition.

Select your preferred TCR1 course date and register

NEW FORMAT! TRAFFIC CRASH RECONSTRUCTION 1 REMOTE / BLENDED LEARNING

Traffic Crash Reconstruction 1 Blend Learning provides the same curriculum as its on-ground counterpart, only with the flexibility of asynchronous Online Learning and the classroom engagement of Remote Learning.  

Each live Reconstruction 1 session is now recorded. Unlike prerecorded, canned lectures from other institutions, NUCPS provides recordings of your actual class and discussion. These recordings are not intended to take the place of the remote classroom experience but allow students to review live lecture and discussion when studying or to view material they may have missed due to an unavoidable absence.

Online Learning Type: Blended Learning. Remote, online lectures run per the posted course schedule, generally on Mondays, Tuesdays, and 1/2-day Fridays. Students should also expect asynchronous course work, study, and exams. Northwestern's expert adjunct instructors also will be available for office hours.  Click to learn more about NUCPS Blended Learning.

Select Your TCR1 Remote / BLENDED Section & Register!

Traffic Crash Reconstruction 2 (80 ACTAR CEUs)

On-Ground or Online

Prerequisites: Crash Investigation 1 & 2, Vehicle Dynamics, Traffic Crash Reconstruction 1 | Download Curriculum Details
The final course in our foundational series, Traffic Crash Reconstruction 2 (TCR2) is a continuation of the skills and knowledge learned in Reconstruction 1. Through a format that  ties lecture material to hands-on analysis, instructors cover conservation of energy and special velocity calculations for situations involving vehicle falls, flips, and rollovers. Students also learn basic skills for analyzing Event Data Recorder information and applying such data to traditional reconstructions. Students receive an introduction to the Monte Carlo Statistical Analysis and learn to solve momentum-based collision sequences using spreadsheet analysis. Upon successful completion of this course, participants will possess the core skills of traffic collision reconstruction and the ability to reconstruct crash situations using energy and statistical analysis of momentum-based crash reconstructions. This course is a prerequisite for other advanced reconstruction offerings.

Learn More about TCR2 & Register!

NEW FORMAT! TRAFFIC CRASH RECONSTRUCTION 2 REMOTE / BLENDED LEARNING

Traffic Crash Reconstruction 2 Remote / Blended Learning provides the same curriculum as the traditional on-ground course but with the flexibility of asynchronous Online Learning combined with the engagement of the Remote Learning classroom.

Each live TCR2 lecture is now recorded. Unlike prerecorded, canned lectures from other institutions, NUCPS provides recordings of your actual class and discussion. These recordings are not intended to take the place of the remote classroom experience but allow students to review live lecture and discussion when studying or to view material they may have missed due to an unavoidable absence.

Online Learning Type: Blended Learning. Live remote lectures run per the posted course schedule, generally on Mondays, Tuesdays, and 1/2-day Fridays. Students should also expect asynchronous course work, study, and exams. Northwestern's carefully selected, expert adjunct instructors also will be available for office hours. Click to learn more about NUCPS Blended Learning.

REGISTER FOR TCR2 REMOTE / Blended LEARNING!

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