The development laws of traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） determine that master-apprentice education， characterized by “oral teaching that inspires true understanding within"， is still an important way for talents cultivation and academic inheritance. This article deeply discussed the contemporary significance of master-apprentice education of TCM from three aspects， that is， an important way to inherit the excellent TCM culture， a key step to implement the national TCM development strategy， and an inevitable path for inheritance and innovation of TCM. The profound connotation of TCM master-apprentice education has been systematically analyzed from “people-oriented” inheritance of medical moral， theory and technique， the special master-apprentice contract system “derived from the same origin”， and the focus on both classics and clinical practice with the principle of “integration of the invisible and the tangible”. Guided by the key issues that constrain the development of master-apprentice education of TCM， this paper summarized the main contradictions， such as insufficient social cognition， insufficient vitality of academic education， and inadequate support system. Focusing on how to promote the inheritance and innovation of TCM culture during the period of strategic opportunity， practical paths for developing master-apprentice education of TCM has been proposed， such as reshaping the cultural atmosphere of master-apprentice education of TCM， integrating master-apprentice education throughout the entire process of talent cultivation in universities， establishing a multi-level education model， and improving the support system.