diff --git a/src/Http/Controllers/TicketingSettingsController.php b/src/Http/Controllers/TicketingSettingsController.php
index d85418e..d5d36c2 100644
--- a/src/Http/Controllers/TicketingSettingsController.php
+++ b/src/Http/Controllers/TicketingSettingsController.php
@@ -511,8 +511,12 @@ class TicketingSettingsController extends Controller
         $q = trim((string) $request->input('q', ''));
 
         // Two characters, like every other picker on the platform: one letter
-        // is most of the directory, and the dropdown is ten rows.
-        if (strlen($q) < 2) {
+        // is most of the directory, and the dropdown is ten rows. Counted in
+        // CHARACTERS, like admin.settings.users.search, not bytes: an accented
+        // letter is two bytes and a CJK surname is three, so a byte floor lets
+        // a single keystroke answer with the directory on exactly the names a
+        // school has the most trouble typing.
+        if (mb_strlen($q) < 2) {
             return response()->json([]);
         }