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The emergence and evolution of engineering education in China during the formative period 1902-1922 involved three historical stages. From 1902 to 1911, engineering was established as an independent discipline, but crucial links were retained with other fields and bodies of knowledge, and particularly Confucian traditions. The period 1912 to 1916 witnessed the separation of knowledge rather than integration, and the breaking of relations between engineering and humanities, including cancellation of the Confucian classics. From 1917 to 1922, some independent engineering universities and colleges were born, as the educational system reform recognized the legitimacy of the university organized around a single field. For each stage, influences on engineering education are discussed based on the historical context, which shifted China from traditional society to modern society. The paper also discusses how these early changes had a lasting influence on the development of Chinese engineering education, and reflect key tensions that remain relevant in current reform and policymaking efforts. Our account is based mainly on primary sources (e.g., original policy documents) and secondary scholarship. The main audiences for this paper include historians of engineering and engineering education, engineering educators wanting to learn more about the development of Chinese engineering education, and engineering education researchers interested in international comparative studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]