Eric Greitens was born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri. He attended Duke University, where he studied ethics, philosophy, and public policy, graduating summa cum laude in 1996.
As a Rhodes and Truman Scholar, he pursued graduate studies at the University of Oxford, earning a Master of Philosophy in development studies in 1998 and a Ph.D. in politics in 2000.
His doctoral thesis investigated how international humanitarian organizations can best serve children affected by war.