The first time was in 1959 to get a master's in fine arts at the University of Iowa. Then in 1964, he earned a yearlong Fulbright scholarship from the US Department of State, which he spent touring the United States and giving lectures.
余光中兩度赴美，第一次在 1959 年，取得愛荷華大學藝術碩士學位；1964 年則應美國國務院之請，赴美巡迴講學一年。