How to go about becoming a croupier??

mblessing19

Hi all, I'm new to the site but I thought i'd get stuck in!

I would really love to know, how to go about becoming a fully licenced croupier in a proper casino. I know it's not as mainstream over here as it is in the states, but never the less i'd love to give it a shot, but I'm finding it hard to see anywhere that offers training and even croupier jobs for that matter are hard to come by.

If anyone can help that would be brilliant, Thanks!

El_Rey

Hi Mblessing19,

In the past I have seen Trainee Croupier positions advertised in the local press and on the Jobcentre Plus website.

Are there many casinos near to where you live? It could be worth contacting them and asking if they have any positions available.

nexuss

A lot of casinos are always look for trainee croupiers.As the above says contact all casinos like grosvenor.

maninthestreet

It's a bit of gamble, apparently.

grantos3000

Hi there. The industry at the minute is struggling so jobs are not as widely available as they were a a year ago - but depending on where you are, vacancies are available if you have the patience to look (I lost my job at gala as a croupier and it took me two months to find somewhere that was recruiting - I eventually found Mint Casino in Edinburgh). There are some websites out there that list alot of jobs which are available in UK casinos - try gaming floor, however the best way of finding out is simply to email the manager at your local casino(s) and ask if they are taking on dealers. However they will be looking for long term dealers rather than someone who is looking to "try it out to see if they like it", or to "say that they have done it"! Be aware that many casinos will make you pay for your License if you leave within a certain amount of time from starting.

Alternatively, if you are willing to invest a bit of money in it (and have a better chance of getting a job in a casino as casinos at the minute are trying to cut back on costs including training costs), Blackpool college (and probably other colleges) run a croupier course which I think costs around £600 - this will teach you how to deal blackjack, 3 card poker and roulette but I am not sure how long the course takes - think it is about 6 weeks - I know alot of people who have taken this course and few of them have difficulty in finding a job afterwards as the course also tries to find you a job after completion of the course.
The best thing you could do is to get yourself a PFL gaming license - these do cost alot though and need to benewed every 5 years. The reason I say this is that many casinos look for experienced dealers simply because they already have this licence - which is not only expensive, but the application can take a long time (sometime up to 2 months), and you cannot deal until you receive this license. If you are interested, in doing this look on the gambling commission website (I cant write website addresses on here but search for gambling commission for your country in google and you should find the site)

Also, dont be afraid to re-contact a casino a few months after an initial query - when I originally got my job at Gala in May, the Mint in Edinburgh were not recruiting, however I emailed them last week and they now are.

Pay (and the way you are treated) wise, I would avoid Gala Casinos as you have to pay for your own license when you leave the company (regardless of the number of years of service), the dealers are the worst paid in the country, and they have the worst treated staff (minimum wage for working all hours, no staff meals (the only company I know who dont do this) , customers allowed to give you abuse without being thrown out, no overtime rate for your first 8 hours per week of overtime etc) - or this is the case at the Riverboat in Glasgow and the Gala in Aberdeen) - I do not know any croupier who works for Gala and honesly says they enjoy the job. I will be honest with you, as a trainee croupier the most you are likely to earn is £12K per year (excluding london) - but alot of casinos allow staff to take tips now which can significantly boost your wages. As a whole, you are nopt going to earn megabucks as a croupier - however the reason I have stuck it as long as I have is that I love the job!
Grosvenor casinos/G Casinos at the minute seem to pay the best, closely followed by Mint/Circus Casinos. At Grosvenor/G Casinos, you also get an enhanced rate of pay after Midnight, and most Grosvenor/G, circus and mint casinos provide a staff meal free of charge to their employees which although doesnt seem much is nice to have and can save you alot of your own money.

Another thing to be aware of, is that you must be willing to work completely anti-social hours - often until 6.30am or later - some casinos are now also 24 hours so you could end up starting/finishing literally at any time of the day - bear this in mind, particularly if you dont have own transport as many towns/cities have no public transport at the times you will be finishing or starting work.

Despite all the negatives above, I personally thoroughly enjoy my job, and although the pay is not great, the social aspect of it and the enjoyment I get out of my job (now that I dont work for Gala!) helps to outweigh the low pay. So long as you can put up with working all the hours god sends and getting some abuse of customers, I would definately say go for it!

Hope that this helps
Grant

kierencon24

Hi there,
I've worked as a croupier for over 14 years and it is an exciting job.
I would recommend that you contact all your local casinos and ask they have any training schools.
Good luck

Bonnie11

There is a training Academy in Liverpool that does a 4 week course, 3 nights a week of an evening so if you are working you can still train. No guarantee of a job but should enable you to pass a table test. You can apply for your own PFL (licence) and CRB check, therefore getting a job should be easier. I do have details of the Academy if anyone is interested

property.advert

If young and single then getting some experience and joining a ship would be attractive for me. Then there is Las Vegas and I know about the work permit thing but when I worked in the nightlife area of Manchester years ago, I met all kinds of people who could open doors to exciting and sometimes lucrative propositions.

I'd get all the add ons such as free meals you can get and do it in London if you can.

applecharlotte

Blackpool and Fylde College runs a gaming course - they've recently invested millions building the gaming centre. Try your local college. They might run something similar.