While other Brown students may have visited Fiji this past summer for a relaxing holiday getaway, Eva Erickson GS spent her summer there just trying to “survive.”
Erickson, a third-year graduate student in fluids and thermal sciences, competed as a contestant on the 48th season of the hit reality TV show “Survivor,” which premiered on Wednesday night. She is the eighth Brown student or alum to compete in the show.
Since first airing in 2000, the show has garnered an audience of millions who watch castaways compete in a series of challenges to become the “sole survivor” and win a $1 million prize.
Despite hunger, physical exertion and isolation, Erickson described her experience in Fiji as “the adventure of a lifetime” in an interview with The Herald.
Erickson, captain of Brown’s club ice hockey team, was introduced to “Survivor” through her hockey teammates while she was an undergraduate student at the Georgia Institute of Technology.
Enamored by the adrenaline of competitions, Erickson looked for other ways to compete after she came to Brown, she said. In January 2023, Erickson filmed and submitted her “Survivor” audition tape in the locker room after hockey practice.
As soon as Erickson started talking to staff at CBS, she started preparing for the rigorous road ahead, she said.
First, she started weight training to become “more explosive” and build strength. She later altered her diet and introduced intermittent fasting to prepare for the harsh, unpredictable elements of the game.
Another critical element of “Survivor” is the ability to build fires, which Erickson said she had to master at home before appearing on the show.
“I would go in my backyard in Providence and be starting a fire with my flint and a knife,” Erickson said. “I probably looked crazy just being out in my tiny apartment yard.”
Erickson’s preparations extended beyond physical training. She practiced word puzzles and studied past seasons of “Survivor.” Going into the contest, she said her strategy was to lean into her identity as a hockey player, while keeping her identity as a graduate student at Brown a secret.
“I knew that if you’re someone who is very smart, who’s very charismatic, who’s very athletic — it’s going to put a major target on you,” Erickson said.
For Erickson, the most unexpected part of competing on the show was the feeling of being filmed.
“There’s boom mics hanging over you as you’re sleeping,” she added. “There are a ton of people who are just watching you and it was very strange at first.”
As the first contestant on “Survivor” to publicly disclose her autism diagnosis, Erickson said her condition has allowed her to be more authentic and confident. While she said having autism makes it more difficult for her to read social cues — especially in a game involving lying — she also described it as a key strength.
“Having autism does not mean that there’s something wrong with you,” Erickson said. “It is part of who you are, and it’s something that makes me special and unique.”
When Erickson returned to Brown after filming this past summer, she was met with a warm welcome from her teammates and friends.
“People have been super supportive,” she said. “My labmates are setting up watch parties with the whole fluids department at Brown. They really want to celebrate the fact that I am representing our school on national television, which is so cool.”
Grant Landon ’25, one of Erickson’s club hockey teammates, said that he believes success on “Survivor” depends on three key skills: brains, brawns and sociability. Erickson, he said, has all three.
“I think if there’s any single person I know that would do well in ‘Survivor,’ it would probably be her,” said Landon, who has watched the show for the past decade.
He believes that Erickson will stand out on the show with “her social game.”
“She is very good at talking, loves making these relationships, and I think that’s where she’s gonna shine the most,” Landon said. “Beyond being social on the island, I think she’s going to win over America.”
Erickson joined her hockey teammates at the rink to watch the premiere on Wednesday night. If asked, she said she would return to the show, just like “anyone who’s ever been on ‘Survivor.’”
“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing that you always are going to want to do more of,” Erickson said.
Amber Marcus-Blank is a senior staff writer covering undergraduate student life. She is a sophomore from outside of Boston studying Political Science and Public Health on the pre-law track. She is interested in working in politics and journalism in the future and enjoys playing soccer and making playlists in her free time.
