She is a native Clevelander, and practiced at a large law firm in New York City after graduating from Columbia School of Law. She also served as law clerk to U.S. District Judge James S. Gwin of the Northern District of Ohio. Sandhya has worked extensively on get-out-the-vote efforts for presidential campaigns. Among her community activities, she also launched the Cleveland Committee of the Princeton Prize in Race Relations, which recognizes high school students for their positive impact on race relations. She was also a Fulbright Scholar to India and worked in the international human-rights field before law school.