But that Initiate Grade is for Shielding, which is a prerequisite of Absorption... you do not add it twice...

The phrase "usual spell resistance test" likely does not consider a metamagic. Consider how broken your nullmage is by letting them double their dice pool due to initiate grade shenanigans. High initiate grade mages would never get hit by spells and would only take magical damage from their own drain. So basically that's wrong.

The concept of a nullmage is still interesting.

The effects of both metamagic techniques are worded as dice pool modifiers. They usually stack. There is the optional dice pool restriction rule though....

I wouldn't think the bonus dice are added twice:

Absorption:
...To use this metamagic, the character performs the usual Spell Resistance Test (pp. 173-174, SR4) using Counterspelling, and adding the initiate grade as a dice pool modifier...

In the SR book (SR4A, p185, "Spell Defense"), there's no mention of initiate grade or Shielding in the Spell Resistance Test. So the "usual" spell resistance test is Body or Willpower + Counterspelling.

Further, I think Shielding itself says that the bonus dice wouldn't apply if you're using Absorption:

Shielding:
When using Counterspelling to protect against hostile spells, the magician adds a number of dice equal to her initiate grade to her Counterspelling dice...These additional dice are not gained
for any other use of Counterspelling.

So the mage isn't using Counterspelling to protect against hostile spells, they're using Absorption (which included Counterspelling I guess). Possibly twisted interpretation on my part, but that's how it reads to me.

So? The description of Physical Skills don't mention Enhanced Articulation. Do you think that bonus does not apply either?

What do you think the character is doing with absorption?

Yeah, you have some points. I agree it's open to interpretation.

But if they intended Shielding and Absorption to stack, I would also think they would mention this in the description of Absorption, which has Shielding as a prereq. They shy away from that, and use terms like the "usual Spell Resistance Test (pp. 173-174, SR4). The way it's worded sounds to me like they don't want Absorption to be Shielding + Absorption, but Counterspelling + Absorption.