Robert J. Kiely will step down from his post as associate dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences for undergraduate education at the end of the current academic year. Kiely, who is also the master of Adams House and professor of English, said Thursday that the position of associate dean has become a full-time job and that he wanted to devote his time to his other duties.

Dean Rosovsky established Kiely's post in 1972 to handle those academic affairs formerly within the direct jurisdiction of the Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Envisioned as a part-time commitment without executive responsibilities, the duties of the associate dean have steadily increased.

In announcing his decision, Kiely expressed an intention to "go back to spending time teaching and writing."

"It was never a full-time career interest for me. This was a way of serving the University without giving up my academic responsibilities," he said.

The major question raised by the resignation is its effect on future decisions by the Committee on Undergraduate Education, which Kiely chairs. The CUE is in the midst of a large-scale reevaluation of undergraduate education at Harvard. In the past, Kiely has been a relatively active proponent of change in the undergraduate curriculum.

It seems possible that there will be no new associate dean of the Faculty for undergraduate education to replace Kiely. Francis M. Pipkin, whom Rosovsky appointed in the spring as associate dean of the Faculty for the Colleges, could take over most of Kiely's specific duties as he becomes a full-time dean.

Kiely said Thursday that he did not know whether or not Pipkin would now assume chairmanship of the CUE. However, Dean Rosovsky said Pipkin's post, unlike Kiely's, "is essentially an executive job."