Provided is a UV-curable ink jet coating comprised of a copolymer or mixture of polyvinyl alcohol and polyethylene oxide, and a water-soluble polymer which can act as an electron and/or proton donor, preferably containing at least one carbonyl group. The entire mixture is UV cured once coated onto a substrate thereby creating a matrix due to crosslinking between the water soluble polymer and the polyvinyl alcohol/polyethylene oxide copolymer or mixture. The result is an ink receptive coating which will absorb many different ink jet inks very rapidly, while exhibiting high gloss. The ink jet medium thereby permits use with many different printers and inks.