The purpose of this study was to compare hand washing awareness and microorganism contamination on the hands for evaluating the difference between awareness and conditions of hand hygiene. The average number of total aerobic bacteria and coliform was 2.7 log CFU/hand and 1.8 log CFU/hand, respectively. Coliform bacteria were detected in all of the students tested in this study. The questionnaire survey data obtained via a direct interview were collected from 100 university students with microorganism analysis. A majority (90%) of the students recognized that good hand hygiene is important in order to prevent food poisoning. In the hand washing survey data, the responses suggesting “always washed” from “before eating food”, “after handling money”, “after finishing study” and “after visiting patients” were observed in 18, 13, 15 and 33 out of the 100 students, respectively. The questionnaire data of hand washing frequency and time duration showed that 14 students and 6 students answered “more than 8 times of hand washing per day” and “more than 30 seconds of hand washing time”, respectively. These results indicated that improper hand washing practices and poor hand hygiene were identified in the majority of the students. This emphasizes the difference between awareness and conditions of hand hygiene. Repeated hand washing education about the frequency, time duration and methods is constantly required to improve hand hygiene. Installation of hand washing equipment in the space of a restaurant and cafeteria is suggested for enhancing hand hygiene before eating food.