[AndrewPospeshil]

It's pretty much all been stated in this thread, but here's my take. FIRST created the Dean's List Award system with Regionals in mind - I think FiM had only used districts for a year or two when the award was created. Thus, only 3 levels needed to exist: Winner (crowned at CMP), Finalist (one or two from each Regional who go to CMP), and Semifinalist (nominated by the team and judged/interviewed at Regionals).

The system is the same at Regionals now (I think??), but the inconsistency arises with Districts. FIRST never created a Quarterfinalist or Nominee position, so those in the District system are left without an official name for those who don't move on to DCMP. So those nominated by teams in District systems are in a grey area. They're Semifinalists, because they're nominated by their teams. But they're not Semifinalists (yet), because they're not necessarily advancing to Finalists at Districts.

FIRST seems to be leaning towards the former definition of Semifinalist. At District events (or at least, FIM Livonia), students who interview receive pins that say "Semifinalist" on them. I'm also pretty sure the Opening Ceremonies script specifically refers to the entire list as Semifinalists. In the end, it really doesn't matter. Because there's no official lingo, you can use either terminology. I figure most will say they're Semifinalists when they receive the nomination, and Semifinialist if/when they advance to DCMP as well.