Casino Royale it is not. The country's first casino school is preparing to train the future staff of the much-awaited gambling era in the small city-state.

The country will see the casino boom by 2009 with the construction of two casino resorts. The new establishments are expected to bring in more than $1.4 billion dollars a year for Singapore and will need a minimum of 35,000 staff to run them.

Freshmen at the Club Gambling Training Center study the arts of sorting chips, spinning roulette balls and shuffling decks of cards.

The first crop of graduates are expected to finish by January.

Ramachandar Siva, the school's director, has high standards for the six-month training courses, which cost about $3,300 dollars to take.

"We not only teach dealing techniques, but we also advise our students how to handle gamblers who have just lost their shirts," he says.

"Don't joke about players' losses, not even after work, because he might eventually learn about it," Siva warns.

The students are also prepped on various cheating tricks so that they may be to spot them.

"Many casinos are not doing that because they are afraid croupiers might teach those tricks to their uncles," Siva smirks.

Singapore's casino laws are strict and gambling houses are required to name addicted gamblers who need help.