Max Dawson
Pre-merge boot (deep sigh)… Survivor 30, E5
Played on
14 days played
Game record
Vote alignment1of 2 ballots
Too few ballots to rank
Immunity record0career immunity wins
No wins to rank
Occupation at casting Media Consultant Hometown Topanga, California
Played with 17 castaways across 1 season See every connection ↓ Max Dawson's time on Survivor 30: Worlds Apart was short: they went out as the 5th voted out, gone after 14 days, sent home by a 5-2 vote. While the run lasted, Dawson cast 2 tribal council votes in Survivor 30, 1 with the majority.
Get to know Max Dawson
Max Dawson's own answers from the pre-game cast profile CBS published before the season aired.
- Claim to fame
- I taught a college class on Survivor at Northwestern University.
- Hobbies
- Going to the beach, swinging kettlebells and collecting vinyl records.
- Pet peeves
- Waiting.
- Inspiration
- My father, who has survived Vietnam, heart disease, cancer, botched surgeries, MRSA and more than 40 years of living with my mom and grandmother.
- Castaway they say they are most like
- Jonathan Penner. We are both opinionated, outspoken, truth-telling Jews who make our livings with our words. Like him, I love Survivor and all that it stands for. I believe that the game deserves to be honored by the individuals who are fortunate enough to play it.
- Why they wanted to play
- First and foremost, I am playing to win. That said, I'm also strongly motivated by the prospect of hearing Probst say, "All the fixins."
Birthplace, pre-game profile and alliance facts adapted from Survivor Fandom and Wikipedia, retrieved 2026-07-21. Licensed CC BY-SA.
Fan poll Players
Survivor Hall of Fame: is Max Dawson in or out?
Tap to vote and see what fans think 1,349 community votes
Community votes are fan estimates for fun, not a scientific survey.
Seasons
| Season | Result | Days | Tribes | Votes against | Confessionals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Worlds Apart Season 30, 2015 | 5th voted out | 14 of 39 days
| Masaya Nagarote | 5 | 10 |
The vote that sent Max Dawson home
Five of the seven ballots named Max Dawson on day 14 of Survivor 30: Worlds Apart, a 5-2 vote.
Max Dawson voted for Will Sims II.
Castaway network
Max Dawson’s connections
The strongest overlaps are surfaced first; every castmate is organized by season below.
- 17
- castaway connections
- 9
- tribemates
- 1
- winner
- 4
- returning players
Connections worth exploring
Repeat pairings, other-show overlaps, tribe overlap, winners and Survivor veterans rise to the top.
The other 12 castaways
Open the season for the rest of the cast and the context behind each connection.
Worlds Apart 12 castaways View cast
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Carolyn Rivera Shared a tribe1 season -
Dan Foley Shared the cast1 season -
Jenn Brown Shared a tribe1 season -
Joaquin Souberbielle Shared a tribe1 season -
Kelly Remington Shared a tribe1 season -
Lindsey Cascaddan Shared the cast1 season -
Nina Poersch Shared the cast1 season -
Rodney Lavoie Jr. Shared the cast1 season -
So Kim Shared a tribe1 season -
Tyler Fredrickson Shared a tribe1 season -
Vince Sly Shared the cast1 season -
Will Sims II Shared a tribe1 season