Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
short list
noun
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ After being selected from a short list of five people, I was finally not offered the position.
▪ At the other end of the scale a short list of names and addresses is not necessarily harmless.
▪ It gave her a short list of problems and asked her to solve them.
▪ Readers at Borders Books shops helped to choose the short list.
▪ The equity department was planning a boat trip to become further acquainted with the trainees on its short list.
▪ These were narrowed down to a short list of 13 from which Jim's was selected as best-overall.
Wiktionary
short list
n. a list of candidates that has been generated from a longer list (a long list)
WordNet
short list
n. a list of applicants who have been deemed suitable and from which the successful person will be chosen
Wikipedia
Short list
A short list or shortlist is a list of candidates for a job, prize, award, political position, etc., that has been reduced from a longer list of candidates (sometimes via intermediate lists known as "long lists"). The length of short lists varies according to the context. A candidate on a short list may not receive the award or position.