Objective To identify global research hotspots and trends in Field Epidemiology Training Programs (FETP) and provide insights for FETP in China.

Methods Literature published between January 1999 and September 2025, affiliated with or funded by FETP, was retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection. A bibliometric analysis was conducted in CiteSpace to examine the publication volume, country/region distribution, authors, keywords, and citation patterns.

Results A total of 1 388 relevant publications were included, and the annual publications showed an overall increasing trend and peaked in 2024 (n = 130). Sweden (30.7%, 426/1 388), the United States (21.8%, 303/1 388), and the United Kingdom (15.4%, 214/1 388) were the primary contributors. A global collaboration network was formed, centered around the United States, the United Kingdom, and France. Within author collaboration networks, only Canadian FETP scholars formed a core cluster, indicating limited international collaboration. Keyword analysis revealed that FETP research hotspots focused on infectious disease epidemiology, outbreak investigation, and vaccine effectiveness evaluation. The evolutionary trend shifted from early infectious disease investigation (2010–2014) to transmission mechanisms and emergency response (2014–2019), with recent research focusing on public health system strengthening, vaccine effectiveness, and antimicrobial resistance (2019–2025). Co-citation analysis identified core journals, including Emerging Infectious Diseases (473 citations), The Lancet (464 citations), and PLoS One (450 citations). Highly cited publications primarily addressed emerging infectious disease responses and vaccine effectiveness evaluation.

Conclusions FETP research has expanded from disease investigation to global public health capacity building. Future efforts should be made to strengthen international collaboration, integrate advanced technologies, and enhance training frameworks comprehensively.