Rudd earned a bachelor’s degree (BA) cum laude in psychology from Princeton University in 1983, where he also lettered in Varsity football.

[2] Rudd then began active duty service in the United States Military as a U.S. Army Captain originally stationed at Fort Ord, California and later at Fort Hood, Texas, transitioning from active duty service following the Gulf War.

[3] Rudd served as a faculty member at Texas A&M College of Medicine while on staff at Scott & White Clinic and Hospital, eventually earning tenure as an associate professor.

[14] Rudd was active in leadership with the American Athletic Conference (AAC) during his tenure, serving a two-year term as vice-chair, a two-year term as chair, serving on the NCAA presidential forum for three years, and being appointed to the NCAA Board of Directors in 2021.

[17] In recognition of his service to the University of Memphis, the Board of Trustees created an approximately $4M endowment for a new initiative, the Rudd Institute for Veteran and Military Suicide Prevention p, which will focus on clinical service delivery and related research for active-duty military and Veterans.

[25] He also proposed Fluid Vulnerability Theory as an explanatory model for understanding, assessing, and intervening with those at risk for suicide.

[26] Rudd's early work, including a clinical trial in the early 90's, developed and utilized crisis response planning as an alternative to "no suicide contracts", an intervention proven effective for those presenting with suicide risk and a precursor to the commonly-used variant, safety planning.

He has served as a consultant to the United States Air Force, the U.S. Army, the Department of Defense and the Beijing Suicide Prevention and Research Center.

[3] Rudd has served on the Institute of Medicine/National Academies of Science Committee on Assessment of Resiliency and Prevention Programs for Mental and Behavioral Health in Service Members and Their Families.