Jan Ploeger was born on 18 February 1913, in the small town of Noodbroek in the Dutch province of Groningen. He qualified as a primary school teacher and taught for three years. During this time he served with the Regiment Geniste (Netherlands). Worsening economic conditions in western Europe, however, enticed him to emigrate to South Africa in 1936. Jan Ploeger immediately began to qualify himself in his new fatherland. He registered as a student at the University of Pretoria and was awarded a B.A. in 1938. This was followed by a M.A. in 1940 and a M.Ed. in 1943. He attained a D.Phil. (History) in 1945, under Professor I.D.Bosman. His thesis, "Onderwys en Onderwysbeleid in die Suid-Afrikaanse Republiek onder S.J. du Toit en Dr N. Mansvelt (1881-1900)", was published in the Archives Yearbook for South African History in 1952.