Should I retake the ACT to get in?

Hi, so I’m wondering if I should take the ACT again to improve my chances of getting into certain schools.

UW/W GPA are basically the same( my school only offered two honors classes and no AP, terrible, I know.) 3.7
ACT w/ writing 2018 : 25 with 9 on writing
ACT without writing 2019: 31 ( mind you, I had no test prep lol, I don’t know how that happened)

I’m wondering if I should retake the act with writing if I want to apply to USC and University of Washington because they require writing but the writing score is for a different test than my best one.

Thank you in advance…

For USC, yes definitely retake the ACT since your 25 composite is well the below the average and the 31 is borderline with no essay. Since the essay is required, only the ACT composite with essay would be considered.

2018 data:
Fall Admits 8,339 13.0% admitted
Middle 50th percentile: 3.79 – 4.00

Middle 50th percentile ACT English:33 – 35
Middle 50th percentile ACT Math: 29 – 35
Middle 50th percentile ACT Composite: 31 – 35

I believe you can send both test scores to the schools and they’ll look at both but check their policies to fact check me on that one.

USC testing requirement:
USC ACT Essay Policy
USC requires that applicants submit an ACT Essay along with the rest of the exam. Since the essay is an optional component of the test, students considering USC should take note of this policy.