Abstract. We study the asymptotic behavior of the partition function and the correlation kernel in random matrix ensembles of the formwhere M is an n × n Hermitian matrix, α > −1/2 and t ∈ R, in double scaling limits where n → ∞ and simultaneously t → 0. If t is proportional to 1/n 2 , a transition takes place which can be described in terms of a family of solutions to the Painlevé V equation. These Painlevé solutions are in general transcendental functions, but for certain values of α, they are algebraic, which leads to explicit asymptotics of the partition function and the correlation kernel.