It is now more lucrative to go on Love Island than to Oxford or Cambridge

Economists have found being a contestant on the TV show provides higher life time earnings than an Oxbridge degree

It is more lucrative to be a contestant on Love Island for eight weeks than it is to get a degree from Oxbridge. A group of economists have estimated the return of appearing on the constructed reality at £1.1 million from the sponsorship money that follows, I'm looking at you detox teas and charcoal toothpastes. An Oxbridge degree is worth £815,000 on average over the course of a graduate's life. [caption id="attachment_192017" align="alignnone" width="599"] Estimated earnings by length of stay in the villa (Credit: Frontier Economics)[/caption] Economists at Frontier Economics have established a journey ITV2's vehicle for Instagram fame pays better than three years of academic rigour at one of Britain's best universities. Kristine Dislere, who studied economics in Canada, said: "If you’ve got an offer from Oxbridge and Love Island, you’re better off going on Love Island." The advice is something that the British public appear to already know. There were more applicants for Love Island this year than there were to study at Cambridge and Oxford. 85,000 people applied for the TV show, with 60,000 on launch day alone, compared to 37,000 to the prestigious universities. [caption id="attachment_192018" align="alignnone" width="587"] Probability of remaining in the villa for a percentage of episodes and expected
earnings (Credit: Frontier Economics)[/caption] If a contestant survives half of the show's eight week run time, they can expect to earn £1.1 million. But those who go the whole Majorca marathon, start to finish, can cop as much as £2.3 million, the report said. That number is derived from estimated earnings for appearance fees and sponsored Instagram posts. "These two sources of income are almost guaranteed for anyone returning from the Love Island sunshine," the analysis reads. The five economists behind the report also recommended the best strategy for maximising earnings - IE staying in the villa. Their study of previous public votes shows that it is beneficial to stay in a couple and to avoid breaking up longer term relationships and, in the event of entering the villa later-on, to couple up with someone who had previously proven popular in public votes.