When an applicant is referred to the matching service, a Partnership Acceleration Liaison (PAL) will work with the applicant to understand the needs of project and team, and to identify and propose suitable research partners. Once the applicant has approved a research partner, the PAL will facilitate initial correspondence and help establish the match. After being matched, referred applicants meet (virtually or in person) with their research partner(s) on a mutually agreeable schedule to discuss the project. Together, partners may decide to submit a new application for E4A funding (or funding from another source) or may decide that further work is necessary before applying for funding. There is no guarantee of E4A funding for applicants who participate in the matching service.