Robert Andrew Foley was born on 18 March 1953 in Sussex, England, at a moment when British universities were broadening their engagement with the sciences of human origins. Educated at Peterhouse, Cambridge, Foley went on to establish himself as an archaeologist, anthropologist, academic, and writer working in English, with a sustained specialization in human evolution.

His professional life in higher education began in 1977, when he took up a lectureship in anthropology at the University of Durham, a post he held until 1985. That appointment placed him within the disciplinary framework of anthropology at a point early in his career, and it initiated a long association with British university teaching. From Durham, Foley returned to Cambridge, where he became a fellow of King's College in 1987, a fellowship he has maintained continuously since that year. His standing within British academic life was further recognized through his election as a Fellow of the British Academy.

In 2003, Foley was appointed Leverhulme Professor of Human Evolution at the University of Cambridge, a named chair in his area of specialization. He has held that professorship since its award, continuing his work as a lecturer and academic at Cambridge. His fellowship at King's College, Cambridge, now spanning several decades, and his role as Leverhulme Professor of Human Evolution together constitute the institutional framework within which his career as an archaeologist, anthropologist, and university teacher has been conducted.