Engineering, Survivor, and the Spectrum: A Conversation with Eva Erickson

Survivor Season 48 runner-up Eva Erickson puts her engineering mindset and autism advocacy in the spotlight.

Brown University doctoral student in fluid and thermal sciences, Eva Erickson, brought her engineering mindset to Survivor Season 48. As the show’s first openly autistic contestant, she went the distance—making it to the finale and finishing second overall.

Erickson is one of 25 engineers selected for ASME's 2025 Watch List. Here's an excerpt of her feature in Mechanical Engineering magazine:

Considering her many impressive endeavors, it is no surprise to hear that time management has been one of Erickson’s greatest challenges—and successes. Outside of research and Survivor, she’s also the captain of the men’s club hockey team at Brown and an NCAA hockey official.

“When I first brought this stuff to [my advisor] that I'm going to be traveling for reffing, that I'm going to be on Survivor, he said, ‘I have no worries about you getting your work done... I know that you will not let yourself fall behind.’”

In this episode of ASME TechCast, Erickson shares insights on her engineering research, her autism advocacy, and the inspiration behind her decision to join Survivor. The podcast episode was recorded shortly after the airing of ⁠S48 E05⁠.