After acquiring BA degree with excellence, Nouri Jaffar went to Cairo to study at the High Education Institute in the mid-forties of the previous century. Afterwards, he was able to obtain a scholarship to the United States of America in 1945 to attain the MA and Ph.D degrees in five years. His studies concentrated on education and psychology.

Nouri Jaffar spoke of his memories of his relationship with the American philosopher John Dewey, the pragmatic theorist, during this period, thus:

When I went to the United States in a scientific delegation to finish my higher studies and specialize in education and psychology in the years 1945-1949, I luckily got in touch with the philosopher John Dewey. I happened to have a personal relationship with him and he presented me with one of his books. He was not my supervisor because he had retired when I got acquainted with him, but I was attached to him personally and I stayed at his house for the acquisition of his knowledge and to discuss things with him so that he would encourage me. I also stayed at his apartment in New York for a whole month to read his books and memories their sentences as if they were ideas of my own. I took some photos with him and I was one of the eminent students who were delegated to the United States of America.

I was one of the eminent students at the time, for I received an appreciation letter every three months from Iraqi embassy when they received our grades. That appreciation carried the signature of the Iraqi ambassador at the time, Ali Jawdat Al-Ayoubi.