Amber first made her television debut three years ago on Survivor: The Australian Outback. She continued on to eventually win the million-dollar prize for being the best and hottest Survivor All-Star. The luxury item that she brought with her on the show Survivor was a journal and a pen. She was also the first Survivor winner to beat the "Survivor curse", in that she won a car and ultimately went on to be the sole Survivor in the show.
Her birth name is Amber Joy Brkich and she is 5'6" tall and is from Beaver, Pennsylvania. She was a cheerleader at Beaver Area High School and is a recent graduate of Westminster College in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania. Brkich earned her B.A. degree in Pubic Relations, with a minor in Speech Communications. She also was on the Dean's list five consecutive times during college.

Brkich worked as an administrative assistant at the time of the show and prior to that she was a waitress, librarian assistant, swimming instructor, lifeguard and babysitter for her professor. Her hobbies are going out with her friends, dancing and having a lot of fun. She is a member of Alpha Gamma Delta Sorority, where she holds the position of Vice President and New Member Coordinator.

Brkich had the opportunity to pose for Playboy but turned it down but did pose for free in Stuff magazine's July 2001 issue. She also was ranked #93 in Stuff magazine's "102 Sexiest Women In The World" in 2002. Additionally she was named #73 on the Maxim magazine "Hot 100 of 2005" list. Her convertible's license plate bears the slogan "Survivor 2".

She met and is now married to fellow cast mate Boston Rob, Rob Mariano. After winning 'Survivor All-Stars', Brkich wrote the book 'Amber's Guide For Girls: Advice on Fame, Family, Fashion and More!' and had it published.