Since the establishment of CAE, entrusted by the relevant ministries and commissions, the academy has offered consultancy to the State on major programs, planning, guidelines, and policies.

In the meantime, the members, based on their own experiences and perspectives accumulated in a long term and in combination with international trends of the development of engineering science and technology, have regularly and actively put forward their opinions and suggestions.

The General Assembly of the CAE is the highest decision-making body of the academy and is held during the first week of June bi-annually.

The composition of its members include:[1] Deng Zhonghan was elected to the Chinese Academy of Engineering in 2009 at the age of 41, making him the youngest academician in the history of the CAE.

The senior engineers, professors and other scholars or specialists, who shall have the Chinese citizenship (including those who reside in Taiwan, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Macao Special Administrative Region and overseas) and who have made significant and creative achievements and contributions in the fields of engineering and technological sciences, are qualified for the membership of the academy.