A beard question.

Okay, so...I'm turning twenty in July. I'm in College, yada yada yada; anyway, in terms of, well, "ruggedness," I still look like I'm twelve. Okay, maybe that's overstating it a tad, but I do look pretty young for my age (I get fifteen-seventeen a lot, but since I'm tall, yeah). Anywho, as you can probably guess, I was never really able to grow much facial hair. 
 
 The sides of my face are completely clear (no stubble at all), and I can only grow a very faint goatee currently -- which I never do, because it looks terrible on me. Anyway, getting to the point, lately I've noticed that I've had to shave the aforementioned goatee-stubble more han usual. A month or two ago it increased to every other day, but now I'm almost at the point where I have to shave every morning. 
 
So here's my question for those with beards (Claude, looking at you for this one): I'm not a little kid; I'm almost twenty. Can/Will I even develop a full beard at this point? Or is it pretty set as to what my potential facial hair is? I'm just worried that I'm going to break out into some sort of uncontrollable grizzly-adams thing in another year - which COULD be cool, though it would require some getting used to. 

 
My suggestion is to not shave for a week or a few weeks and see what happens. Go for a month if you're willing. No use guessing, just let it happen and find out.
 
EDIT: Maybe even try it out one or two weeks every year; see if it changes.

" Okay, so...I'm turning twenty in July. I'm in College, yada yada yada; anyway, in terms of, well, "ruggedness," I still look like I'm twelve. Okay, maybe that's overstating it a tad, but I do look pretty young for my age (I get fifteen-seventeen a lot, but since I'm tall, yeah). Anywho, as you can probably guess, I was never really able to grow much facial hair.   The sides of my face are completely clear (no stubble at all), and I can only grow a very faint goatee currently -- which I never do, because it looks terrible on me. Anyway, getting to the point, lately I've noticed that I've had to shave the aforementioned goatee-stubble more han usual. A month or two ago it increased to every other day, but now I'm almost at the point where I have to shave every morning.  So here's my question for those with beards (Claude, looking at you for this one): I'm not a little kid; I'm almost twenty. Can/Will I even develop a full beard at this point? Or is it pretty set as to what my potential facial hair is? I'm just worried that I'm going to break out into some sort of uncontrollable grizzly-adams thing in another year - which COULD be cool, though it would require some getting used to.  "

I've had a full-on mustache since I was twelve, then a full-on goatee/mustache combo by my junior year in high school.  Now I can grow a "chin strap" along my jaw line and I'm twenty. 
 
So maybe.

" @Hamst3r:   I'm just wondering like, will I start sprouting BEARD from the spots that are completely clear as I get older? Or is that more or less set? "

Yeah, I'd just stop shaving for a while and see what happens. If you've got enough for some chin music, then fantastic.

If you pray to him your dreams will come true.  

Some people just CAN'T grow facial hair.  My 23 year old roommate tried to grow a beard for like 3 weeks last summer and he didn't have anything.  I, however, have been able to grow a full beard since middle school...

Yeah, it gets better as you get older. I used to not be able to grow much around my mouth, as in I had more of a mustache and soul patch than goatee. I've also noticed new hair on my face, giving me more to trim.
 
But yeah, just let it grow for a long time. I honestly think that most people just don't let it grow for long enough. They're like, "I've let it grow for two whole weeks! And I don't have a full on beard?! WTF!". It might take a few months to get all desired results.
 
One last thing. Shampoo your beard. People often complain that their beard is all scratchy but that's because either, it's not neat (trim it), or they're not shampooing. The hair on your face needs to be shampooed the same as the hair on your head. 

I really couldn't grow a beard in my late teens and early twenties. I remember being in the Navy from ages 18 to 21 and not shaving for two or three days. Then around 24 or so, it started filling in. Sadly, when I turned 40, it started turning gray. 
 
I've been growing my beard out for a play the last few months. I usually keep it combed down, but for the play "Inherit the Wind", I'm going to make it all bushy. 

Facial hair will not help you with this problem. Even if you manage to grow a convincing beard (which doesn't sound likely given your hair history), it will simply be a mask for the more fundamental issues that plague your psyche.
 
For one thing, stop eating. Go on a starvation diet and drink only water. Clear your mind and fight the madness that slowly infects you as the hunger mounts. Shun all human contact and suffer, suffer for as long as you can conceivably bear.  Once this has been completed, you will need to feed. Feeding should be done cautiously, and only on acidic substances such as citric fruits and Excedrin. You will need to compensate with an appropriate amount of calcium carbonate (Tums) to counteract the acidic metling of your stomach lining.  At all times you should be in an unbearable state of hunger, eating only just barely enough to stay alive.
 
Once you have done these things, you will find that sleep is impossible. Anything more than four hours of sleep a night will not be attained. Accept this, and use the extra hours to focus your rage into constructive means, such as spelunking or bare-knuckle brawling.
 
Now, you will have to kill a living creature. If you own a pet that eats other pets, this problem can be solved via the loophole of feeding the predator pet. Most likely, however, this is not the case. You will have to arm yourself with nothing but your wits and your madness, and delve into the dark corners of the world. I cannot tell you what you will find, but know this: it means to end you, and should you fail to end it first, you will cease to be.
 
After surviving the trials of hunger and war, the only thing left is to get laid. Prostitutes are cheating, as is rape. In your state of starvation and bloodlust, you have to somehow convince a woman that you are worthy of sexual favors. This is the hardest trial of all, and many that triumph during the first two stages fail horribly here.
 
When you done these things, a great light will be made known to you. You will see the world in a new way, and become born again.
 
Once that happens, the beard will cease to matter. No facial hair will compare with what feats you have accomplished. Any who would think to scorn you for your child-like appearance will immediately stop and recognize that they are addressing a superior being, a warrior poet, a man who could destroy them with naught but a firing of his neurons.
 
Plus, beard are itchy as fuck.

I think Jeff has gone on record saying he is incapable of a true beard, so there's no shame in it if you can't. But growing it out does help see just how much is there; I don't think people are supposed to be FULLY fully grown til like 24. So don't worry about it, and stroke 'em if you got 'em.* 
 
 
* And by "em" I mean whiskers. Not penis.

My advise: Consult Abraham Lincoln.

At 26, I still can't manage the connecting portion between mustache and beard.  Nothin there at all.

Bull Shark testosterone /thread

" @Hamst3r:   I'm just wondering like, will I start sprouting BEARD from the spots that are completely clear as I get older? Or is that more or less set? "

assuming you aren't a chubby guy, i think you're better off clean-shaven. the scruffy look is not really in at the moment.

My facial hair grows incredibly fast on my cheeks, chin, sides, and neck, but I can't grow a mustache for crap. I'll give it another few years before I try growing a full beard.

If you have the genes you can do it.  Might take a few months to get a sizeable one.

You're 20, not 50. If you think you've stopped growing you're fooling yourself.

I have a friend who is 21 and another who is 19 who can't really grow any facial hair.  As for me I was shaving since I was 15.  I like to have a beard at times, however most of the time I'm clean shaven or I have something on the chin.  I kind of wish I didn't have facial hair because it grows fast for me.  My whole face is covered in about 2 days.  I hate shaving so I only do it once a week, but hair on your neck gets really irritating.

" assuming you aren't a chubby guy, i think you're better off clean-shaven. the scruffy look is not really in at the moment. "

" You're 20, not 50. If you think you've stopped growing you're fooling yourself. "

I am 6"7 and look older than my age, but I can't for the life of me grow a beard. 

" @Hamst3r:   I'm just wondering like, will I start sprouting BEARD from the spots that are completely clear as I get older? Or is that more or less set? "

" @chrissedoff:   See my profile pic for reference. "

" @Bruce said:

" Okay, so...I'm turning twenty in July. I'm in College, yada yada yada; anyway, in terms of, well, "ruggedness," I still look like I'm twelve. Okay, maybe that's overstating it a tad, but I do look pretty young for my age (I get fifteen-seventeen a lot, but since I'm tall, yeah). Anywho, as you can probably guess, I was never really able to grow much facial hair.   The sides of my face are completely clear (no stubble at all), and I can only grow a very faint goatee currently -- which I never do, because it looks terrible on me. Anyway, getting to the point, lately I've noticed that I've had to shave the aforementioned goatee-stubble more han usual. A month or two ago it increased to every other day, but now I'm almost at the point where I have to shave every morning.  So here's my question for those with beards (Claude, looking at you for this one): I'm not a little kid; I'm almost twenty. Can/Will I even develop a full beard at this point? Or is it pretty set as to what my potential facial hair is? I'm just worried that I'm going to break out into some sort of uncontrollable grizzly-adams thing in another year - which COULD be cool, though it would require some getting used to.  "

As a significantly bearded gentlemen about to turn 18 in what, 3 days?  I have seen many men in your position.  Basically patience is key if you ever want to grow facial hair in your position.  From what I can tell keep the habit going of shaving for about half a month.  See how quickly and thick this comes through.  Then let the sumbitch grow out.  This is a test to see if it can go.  From what I can tell there's hope yet.  If it STILL doesn't want to work, rinse and repeat if you see progress. If not, then well...there's nothing I can do about your genetics. "

Consult the Rules of Beard Acquisition    
 " 3. No one can predict when your teenage beard will mature into an adult beard. It could take months or years.    " 
 
When I was 20 and made my first attempt at a beard it was a miserable patchy failure.  I managed a fairly solid goatee and a crappy mustache, the rest was just a mess.  Now I'm 22 and have a pretty nice full beard, all i'm lacking is the mustache to beard connection.  So, if i were to hazard a guess I'd say you're far from done at 19. 

I had roughly two hairs on my chin at eighteen. I'm now 21, and the hair is definitely still filling in on my face. I've got annoyingly scattered hairs on my cheeks, something that's just starting to look beardish on my chin, and almost nothing on my upper lip. Of course, I also didn't catch up to my peers in height until senior year of high school, and I've always been quite scrawny in general, so my beard growth may not be typical. However, A friend of mine who has a pretty good goatee says that the rest of his beard won't come in until he's around 25 based on the experience of his family members. I wouldn't worry about it. Just be patient and let it grow out every once in a while to see how it's progressed.

Odd I was just thinking about highly visible beards earlier today.  I would suggest shaving as soon as humanly possible, meaning as soon as that stubble is long enough to catch on a razor.  That should up the growth rate a bit, I seriously don't think letting it just grow out will help.  It especially wont help if it looks patchy as fuck and you feel like you need to keep it for some time.  Once I started shaving I didn't let up, and my beard came in fierce.  You'll probably resent your beard like most guys eventually, the reason I have one is cause it's a pain in the ass shaving every morning.  I just shave my face and let a fat Amish beard grow under my jaw.  I'll usually do a full shave when I swap out my razors....which is another thing you'll resent, having to buy razors more often.  

Just commit to gowing it out for a while. After a month or so you should have a good idea about what you can manage to sculpt it into. But at 20 you can look forward to it filling out a little better for a few more years yet.

I didn't shave regularly until at least 25+.  Up to then, it was pretty patchy.  It will happen. 
 
I have a full beard right now - holiday beard.  I am going to a sales meeting tomorrow, so I will shave it off.  The problem is that the bottom half of the beard (below the chin) is pure white.  The top half of the beard (chin up) is bright red.  It looks very odd to say the least.  Plus, I actually hate beards.

If we are doing photos, well then, here is my 10 day growth.  Notice the white below, red above  :/ 

" @oldschool:  I don't understand dying of hair, embrace the Viking in you, my Ex used to do it all the time, drove me batty, once she kept it a really nice kind of brown/red colour, I really liked it, then she went blonde again,  natural all the way,   also, My dad has that, it's still got colour in places but white mostly, also, go to bed, if you have a work meeting tomorrow, 12:30A.M, tsk tsk tsk :) "