Dr. Cerić is the Grand Mufti of Bosnia-Herzegovina, where he is serving his second term. He received a scholarship to study at Al-Azhar University in Cairo and after completing his studies there he returned to Bosnia-Herzegovina where he became an Imam. After accepting the position of Imam at the Islamic Cultural Center of Greater Chicago, he earned a PhD at the University of Chicago in Islamic Studies. Following this, he returned to Bosnia-Herzegovina, where he became the Grand Mufti in 1999. He is the co-recipient of the UNESCO Felix Houphouet-Boigny Peace Prize for Contribution to World Peace and of the International Council of Christians and Jews Annual Sir Sternberg Award for exceptional contribution to interfaith understanding.