Introduction:

The growing importance given to research training in medical education globally is notorious and reflects the growing scientific production on this topic. In this scenario, the state of the question (EQ) emerges as a bibliographic production tool that promotes an overview of the re-search produced on a given topic, being able to provide a closer approach to the research object and to estimate the possible advances that research in that field can reach.

Objective:

This study aimed to identify what has been studied about research training in medical education and classify them considering the location, type, and intentions of the research.

Method:

This is a EQ whose object of study is research training in medical education. Descriptors related to research training and medical education in Portuguese, Spanish, and English were used. Two databases for national dissertations and theses (Biblioteca Digital de Teses e Dissertações and Catálogos de Teses e Dissertações da Capes) and two databases for international scientific journals (Portal de Periódicos da Capes and PubMed) were searched.

Result:

We identified 33 scientific articles from 18 countries on all continents. Four articles (12%) were presented as opinion articles where the authors theorized about the importance of inserting research elements at the curricular and disciplinary level. Seven articles (21%) portrayed, through case reports, the structural changes and the paths traced in their institutions, as well as the implications of these actions in medical education and the educational process. The remaining 22 articles (67%) documented empirical research with different intentions, with the most recurrent theme being the identification of factors that influence the student body’s search for participation in research.

Conclusion:

Research training in medical education has a body of qualified researchers and spe-cialized periodicals for its dissemination on a global level. We emphasize that no studies were found in the context of theses and dissertations, making this an open field for researchers to deepen and accumulate knowledge.

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