Objective To provide evidence for establishing medical specialist training system in China by evidence-based evaluation on the comparison of medical specialists training programs in different countries in Europe, America and Asia. Methods The principle and method of evidence-based science were adopted. Pubmed, official website (such as Ministry of Health, and medical board), homepages of famous medical universities or teaching hospitals and most frequently used search engines were systematically searched till Mar. 31, 2004. Included literatures were evaluated according to pre-defined standards. Results A total of 878 studies (827 in English, 51 in other languages) were included. The main contents covered clinical courses (43.3%), training quality assessment (13.5%) and existing problems (12.7%). Based on these and information from official website, the process of doctor training could be divided into three stages: residency training, specialist training and continuing medical education, with the characteristics of critical standards and strict examination in each stage. Training programs for neurosurgeon and family practitioner were analyzed. Conclusions Medical specialists training is a systematic project, which needs comprechensive planning and taking all factors (such as requirement of medical care market, diseaseburden) into account . To establishing a connterpart in China, priority should be given to training quality, feasibility and improvability. At the same time, we should change our mind, face the reality, and deal with problems during the interim.