Brown University’s Eva Erickson is a Strong Contender
The doctoral candidate breaks barriers on season 48 of "Survivor."
Brown University School of Engineering student Eva Erickson, the first openly autistic participant on “Survivor,” is also the captain of the Brown men’s club hockey team. Photograph courtesy of Eva Erickson/portrait by Robert Voets/CBS.
Eva Erickson didn’t set out to be a trailblazer, but when she paused her doctoral studies at Brown University to become a contestant on Season 48 of “Survivor,” she became the hit reality series’ first openly autistic participant.
Erickson was diagnosed with autism as a child. Doctors told her parents she would never hold a job or live independently, but they relentlessly explored treatments for their daughter, and she thrived. After earning an undergraduate degree at Georgia Tech, Erickson moved to Providence to pursue a Ph.D. in fluids and thermal sciences at Brown’s School of Engineering.
The Minnesota native is a lifelong ice hockey player, so when she arrived on campus and learned Brown didn’t have a women’s club hockey team, she became the first and only woman to join the men’s team — just as she did at Georgia Tech.
“I was starting over once again, being like, ‘OK, I have to prove myself to these people. It’s something I want,’ and I just was so accepted by the players,” she says. “And now I’m their captain.”
Erickson filmed her “Survivor” audition video after a practice at Meehan Auditorium in January 2023. The next summer, she was on Fiji’s Mamanuca Islands vying for the CBS show’s $1 million prize. When the season debuted earlier this year, Erickson quickly proved herself a worthy competitor; her intrinsic athleticism helped her team win tough, high-stakes competitions. She confided in just one teammate about her autism, but halfway through the season, a challenge pushed Erickson to her limit.
Visibly distraught, she felt it was time to be transparent with her castmates, delivering a raw speech that’s been widely called one of the most emotional moments in “Survivor” history.
“I’ve never viewed my autism as a roadblock to success. It’s not something to work around; it’s just part of who I am. There’s nothing bad about it, but I still have so many things I struggle with with my autism,” she says.
