Dillon Professor of International Affairs Joseph S. Nye Jr. said last night that he will likely leave Harvard to serve in the Clinton administration.

Nye declined to specify which post he would assume. He was deputy undersecretary of state for security assistance, science and technology under President Jimmy Carter.

"I will probably be joining the Administration but nothing has been announced yet," Nye said in an interview yesterday.

Nye said he will travel to Washington today to meet with officials on President-elect Clinton's transition team.

"The chances that I might go into the government are reasonably high, but as to the position, I can't say at this time," Nye said.

Susan J. Pharr, chair of the Government department, could not be reached for comment last night, but one top professor indicated that Nye's departure would leave a hole in the concentration.

"We are extraordinarily understaffed in international relations at the tenure level," said Stanley H. Hoffman, Dillon professor for the civilization of France. "We have to do something whether Joe goes to Washington or not."

"But if he goes," Hoffman added, "it is that much more urgent."

Hoffman said the department has already been looking to fill a senior post in international relations.

"Whether he goes to Washington or not, the department will continue to search for one more senior appointment in international relations."

Stanfield Professor of Internation- al Peace Robert O. Keohane, another expert inNye's field, is reportedly travelling to NorthCarolina to interview with Duke University, wherehis wife was recently appointed president.

Hoffman said that, even if Keohane stays on atHarvard, his long commute between Cambridge andDurham, N.C. may contribute to their problem ofunderstaffing.

Nye, who authored Bound to Lead: TheChanging Nature of American Power, has arguedthat the United States will continue to play aleading role in world politics.

Nye, who was an associate dean of the facultyfor international affairs, was mentioned as acandidate for the Harvard presidency, as well asthe dean of the faculty and dean of the KennedySchool of Government.

Several teaching fellows in Nye's popularundergraduate course, Historical Studies A-12,"International Conflicts in the Modern World,"said last night that the professor had notinformed them of plans to leave Harvard.

If Nye were to accept a job away from campus,he would have to return within two years in orderto retain his appointment.

Nye left his job in the Carter administration,which he accepted in 1977, after the then-Dean ofthe Faculty urged him to return to campus.

"Henry Rosovsky came in and exercised his verypersuasive powers, and I came back and neverregretted it," Nye said in a 1990 interview.

Hoffmann, who described Nye as a friend andcolleague, said he hoped Nye would return to theUniversity after two years in the ClintonAdministration, as he did after working underCarter.

"If he leaves just for two years, thedepartment would survive," Hoffman said.

"If he resigned for good we would lose anextraordinary teacher and scholar," he added.

"My impression is that Joe would not want toresign his chair and would come back in twoyears," said Hoffmann. "That is the way he handledhis previous appointment."

Nye said a government job would not immediatelyimpact the department, since he planned to take asabbatical for the next academic year.

"I will be on leave next year anyway so itwon't make a difference in my teaching," Nye said.

Nye is also director of the Center forInternational Affairs. His departure would be ablow to recent efforts at the internationalizationof Harvard, which have been lead by Nye and formerPresident Derek C. Bok