Kot was born in Kyiv. He graduated from the Faculty of History and Pedagogy of the Kyiv State Pedagogical Institute in 1980. In 1990, he was promoted to the doctorate of history, with a dissertation titled Охорона пам'яток історії та культури в Українській РСР (1943-поч. 60-х рр.) (Conservation of Historical and Cultural Monuments in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic (1943–post-1960s)). Kot was habilitated in history in 2021; his habilitation was titled Повернення і реституція культурних цінностей у політичному та культурному житті України (ХХ – поч. ХХІ ст.) (Return and Restitution of Cultural Values in the Political and Cultural Life of Ukraine (20th–early 21st century)).
