He taught English at a school in Dieburg, Germany, between 1970 and 1971, and subsequently worked as Northern Ireland correspondent for the Katholische Nachrichten-Agentur [de] between 1971 and 1973.

[1] McKeown completed a licentiate in sacred theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome, between 1973 and 1978, during which he also worked for Vatican Radio and as a correspondent for An Saol Mór, an Irish-language programme on RTÉ.

[2] McKeown returned to St MacNissi's College in 1983, where he continued his involvement with youth ministry and was given responsibility for organising the annual diocesan pilgrimage to Lourdes.

[1] He subsequently returned to St Malachy's College in 1987, where he taught and served as dean of the adjoining seminary, before succeeding Canon Noel Conway as president in 1995.

[3] It was reported in an article in The Irish News that the mention of McKeown as a possible successor to Walsh as Bishop of Down and Connor was actively opposed by some priests in the diocese, who regarded him as being "too soft" on the issue of integrated education.

His interests include the interface between faith and the empirical sciences, and working with Catholic schools in Norway, Denmark, Lithuania, Poland and Germany.