Technology and engineering education students responded to a survey regarding hands-on and hands-off activities. First, the students listed hands-on and hands-off activities and what characterized the two types of activities. Activities such as building or assembling something as well as working manually with tools were viewed as hands-on. Passive activities such as listening or watching were perceived as hands-off. Then, the students rated 30 different activities on a bipolar scale ranging from 1 (high degree hands-off) to 7 (high degree hands-on). A Principal Components Factor Analysis of the 30 activities revealed two independent factors. The hands-off factor consisted of many modern technological activities such as computer-aided design, using a three-dimensional printer, and constructing functional prototypes using stereo-lithography technology. The hands-on factor consisted of more traditional activities such as rebuilding an engine and using a screwdriver. These results suggest that students perceive traditional activities as more hands-on than modern activities. (Contains 1 table.)