Should I retake the SAT to improve my Essay score

I took the SAT with Essay this March right before schools closed. I ended up getting a 1550 (750 RW, 800 M) composite score and a 16 (5/4/7) on the essay. In May I took the AP LANG test and got a 5. I am happy with my SAT composite score and my AP LANG score, but I am worried about how my essay score will look on my applications. Should I retake the SAT with essay this fall? Should I focus on studying for SAT Subject Tests? Or should I forget about standardized tests and focus on other aspects of my application?

Your last sentence is your best choice. Given all the upheaval right now, I would absolutely not recommend you retake just for the essay score. Hardly any colleges care about it, it will not make or break anything, and it’s an okay essay score. I think most colleges will be quite lenient about it now anyway.

How many colleges that you’re applying to require the essay? The list is very short, outside of CA state schools.

I wouldn’t bother unless there’s a very specific need that I can’t think of.

Subject Tests are similar.