SINGAPORE: The University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) will set up its Asian campus in Singapore by September next year.
Its Hotel College would be the first in Singapore to offer professional degrees in hotel administration with a component in gaming management.
The degree programmes will be the same as those offered at its William Harrah's College - which is not associated with Harrah's Entertainment.
The university wants to be right at the heart of the tourism boom in Asia, especially China.
Stuart Mann, Dean of William F. Harrah College, University of Nevada Las Vegas, said: "Because of China's growth and China will be the world's tourist destination by 2015 or 2020 at the latest. So, we've been all over Asia, looking for ways to extend the UNLV programme into Asia. It has nothing to with the integrated resorts. It's fortuitous that that is happening."
UNLV says that from September 2006, it expects to take in 200 students for its two-year undergraduate programme.
It will enrol another 50 for the executive MBA programme.
Stuart Mann said: "The courses that they take have a lot of finance, quantitative analysis, human resources management, marketing, etc. They get a wonderful broad-based degree."
And while there's a gaming component in the programme, those who want a career as a croupier should look elsewhere.
A casino laboratory will be part of the campus - but the focus will be strictly on management. - CNA/ir