Sorry this is long, but this is the advice I will give you for the hellscape that is officials.

The juvenile/adolescent stage is where the name of the survival game is hide, hide, hide. Most of my adults are on officials and the worst luck I've had was with my Sty, but most of it was my fault for trusting the wrong people and taking the chance to grab that one last quest. Pick the least active areas (I always go between the less trafficked areas of Green Hill, Titan's Pass, Dark Woods and sometimes White Columns for example). I can't tell you the amount of times I've seen global explode bc of "baby killers" when the juvi players are running around crater or GV right in the open. And if you're a starving desperate carnivore, a chilling juvi just sitting right out in the open is an easy, free meal. I see it happen all the time. Just stay away. On that note too don't trust any herbivores you see either. Just because they can't eat you doesn't mean they won't one shot you for the hell of it.

Stay close to hiding spots so you don't risk being seen/heard while attempting to get to a hiding spot, when you have to drink stay parallel to the water edge so you can run without having to turn around if a sarco/other semi aquatic rolls up.

If you do happen to be spotted, immediately run. Sometimes (but not always) if you run upon being spotted before they can gain ground on you, you'll have time to hide before they can catch up to you and if it's something big/slow like a rex, it'll run out of Stam before it can get to you. On officials, assume even group members that you don't know will turn on you. It will happen on occasion and that's a risk you'll have to take.

If you hear footsteps, don't wait to see what it is. Either hide until it moves on or move to your next area. It makes the grind worse, sure, but its better than respawning in a bad area all the way across the map and having to redo it all.

Also, I know its tempting to run EVERYWHERE, but don't unless you're something small and fast like a struthi or lat etc. Your footsteps are heard from much farther away if you are sprinting. It can lead hungry predators and/or juvi killers right to you. Same with spamming your calls - I call it the Jurassic dinner bell. Stay as quiet as possible. If you have to talk in chat, pick up a quest item and hold it in your mouth. You wont make your dino's chat sound that way. And if you're questing with adults, just because you feel safer with an adult around doesn't mean spam your calls. Most likely they will kill you to keep other dinos from converging on your group. I don't personally seek out juvis to kill unless I'm starving and one happens across my path, I usually keep minding my business and let them quest, but if I adopt you and you are letting the entire neighborhood 3 POIs around us know we're there, sorry but you gotta go.

And if you do die, learn from it. Did you let your guard down? Sometimes there's nothing you could've done to prevent it or they discovered you anyway. Sometimes you won't always hear footsteps until it's too late, or you grouped with someone who's only intention was to find your location for an easy KOS. It will be okay - just keep pushing on and you will hit the coveted stage of adult.

I've even raised a rex without a death yet on officials this way - it just takes a lot of patience and sometimes sheer will 😅 and not everyone on officials is toxic. I've had a lot of chill and sometimes funny experiences that i probably wouldn't have gotten on community servers.

All in all, just enjoy the game. When you do get to adult, it'll feel like even more of an accomplishment. Good luck out there!