MGM has begun classes at its Blackjack School to create dealers for its upcoming .3 billion MGM National Harbor, that is scheduled to open in Prince George’s County, Maryland before the end of 2016.
Almost 200 students signed up for the MGM Dealer School, a six-week crash course in blackjack. Students learn blackjack and one other game, such as craps, roulette or baccarat, and must pass a series of auditions before being able to be interviewed for a job. The MGM National Harbor is planning on employing about 700 dealers, 500 of them fulltime. The casino is expected to employ at total of 3,600.
Many of the students are retirees who want to try a new career. They include a former CIA agent, a retired college professor and even former cop from Washington D.C. Others are former administrators, retired military, and people who always dreamed of being blackjack dealers.
One man, who left his job as an athletic trainer in Nashville and drove to Maryland with his life’s savings to attend dealer school, says he has waited three years for the chance to work at the MGM National Harbor.
