Rao, who graduated from Tech with highest honor in May 2013 with a major in STAC and a minor in Applied Languages and Intercultural Studies (Spanish concentration), moved to Europe for an Erasmus program.

The program is located at Karolinska Institutet (Sweden) and Universidad de Oviedo (Spain), and her thesis -- "The Significance of Computer-Based Technologies in Disaster Management" -- was directed by  Kim Brolin (Karolinska Institutet) and Hugh Crawford (Georgia Institute of Technology). This work allowed Rao to continue research she had begun as an undergrad working with Crawford.